


Waiting For Tomorrow

by trashcansupreme



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Bad Puns, College, Comedy, Doctor/Patient, Dorks, F/F, F/M, Flirty Sans, Fluff and Angst, Having A Bad Time, I'm Bad At Tagging, Love, M/M, Minor Mettaton/Papyrus, Nerdiness, Papyrus Being Papyrus, Sexual Content, Skeletons, Study Date, University
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-13
Updated: 2016-07-26
Packaged: 2018-05-20 02:21:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 28,615
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5988853
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/trashcansupreme/pseuds/trashcansupreme
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Relationships always have their ups and their downs, but when you get into a college relationship with a skeleton transfer student...heck, this roller coaster may be too much for even you to handle!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Say That Again...?

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fanfic, but if you liked it you should check out my tumblr!
> 
> http://trashcansupreme.tumblr.com

“What do you want, Jeremy”, you asked while sighing, not even bothering looking up from your medical textbook. 

 

“Aw c’mon, don’t be like that.”

 

The dim library lights only made his disgustingly smug face more apparent. You tried ignoring him, writing down notes from the textbook for reference later on. You’d actually begun to believe that you had succeeded, since he didn’t move from his crouched smiling position from across the table. But you knew better. He wouldn’t leave until he got what he wanted. As if Jeremy could read your thoughts, he stood fully up and sauntered over to the other side of the table where you were sitting, placing his hand directly on the part you were reading.

 

“Listen, this job is really important to me. It’s an opportunity that I can’t miss out on. The money would go straight to my suit for the interview, I promise.” At this statement you couldn’t help but look up. You were curious to see which lying face he would use today. He met your stare with a warm smile and a small laugh, pretending to be glad that you even made eye contact with him.  _ Ah, that's the “I need money for rent” face. _

 

You hated giving him money...hated the fact that you were his pawn and you couldn’t say no. It’d been like this for almost a year now, him taking the money you gained from your part time job in return for him not telling anyone about your secret, although recently he had been getting bolder.  _ Maybe I can just tell him that I didn’t get enough this month, and he will let it slide. _

 

But, once again, you knew better. As soon as any form of the phrase “No” escaped your lips, he would tell everyone on campus about what a “disgusting monster lover” you were. You couldn’t help but shudder at the thought. Last time a student at Blackmount University claimed they believed a monster should have equal rights, they were harassed by majority of the student body, and even by some staff members. There wasn't a day you could remember that they hadn’t been covered in trash or bruised. Within a month they had dropped out. 

 

_ I CAN’T LET THAT HAPPEN TO ME.  _ This student had been fairly popular and liked by everyone before their confession, and within a month their life was turned into a living hell. You, on the other hand, knew you would not be so lucky. Everyone hated you at BU. And by everyone, you meant it. There wasn’t a single person at the small northern college that hadn’t heard your name before. After all, you  _ were  _ the student who got their bachelor's degree at age 20. Not because you wanted to show off, but because you wanted to learn as much as you could as quickly as you could. You wanted to become a doctor as soon as possible, in order to help as many patients as you were able to. Your biggest secret was  who you wanted to doctor, however. 

 

One week before graduation, a newspaper article had caught your attention. It was discussing the lack of medical services provided to the monsters attempting to integrate into human society. One of the doctors in the article were quoted as saying “There is no reason why a human doctor should be forced to waste medical supplies on beings who may not even respond to the procedure. There is just simply far too little known about them.” His statement disgusted you, and ignited a determination within you that you had never seen before. Later that night, you tried to look the article up online, but were horrified to find the search came up with all forms of malpractice lawsuits where several monsters were left dead or in comatose states. It was then that you knew what you wanted to do with your life. You were going to be the first human doctor that worked with monsters.  _ No one can know,  _ you had thought to yourself then. Except, someone did know. And right now he was standing impatiently with a look said he was about to make your life a whole lot worse than it already was. 

 

“Sorry, I got lost in my thoughts. Of course you can have it, if it’s for such a noble cause!”

 

You cringed internally when he half hugged you in thanks. Shuffling through your backpack, you pulled out a pre sealed envelope with around a thousand dollars in it. It was almost all of your paycheck for the month. Jeremy said thank you again before walking off, no doubt giddy at the feeling of having you pinned under his thumb. He was under the impression that you had given up, that you had accepted the fact that you were now his plaything.  _ Too bad for him. I’m just waiting for my opportunity to pay him back.  _ You turned back to your textbook, burning with resentment. Only half believing, you muttered in your thoughts.  _ Soon this will all end.  _ And, for once, you were right. 

 

But you could have never predicted what those words would truly mean…

 

Or who would make them come true.

 

__________________________________________________________________________

  
  


The next day, you and your mind resorted to your normal state. During the day you spent your time taking notes on lectures and receiving stares and scoffs from the other students. One of them must have been in a particularly bad mood that morning, because she didn’t even hesitate to “accidentally” pour her hot coffee all over your notebook.  _ That's alright. I needed to rewrite it anyways. It was too sloppy, and doing it again will give me a chance to review the concepts.  _ The professor, most likely in just as bad of a mood from witnessing the accident, held her behind, most likely for a stern warning and a notification to the dean. You couldn’t help but wish that you had eaten breakfast, but you had to skip it if you wanted to make your pay last through the rest of the month. That thousand dollar paycheck you lost took a major toll. If the price went any higher next month…..

 

_ No. Let’s not worry about that right now.  _

 

Sighing, you left your last class of the day and headed towards your dorm room. It was at the top floor of the student housing building, at the very end of the hallway. Majority of the rooms in the hall were vacant, due to the poor heating and their tattered appearance. The students at BU were generally wealthy, so they could afford the rooms on the lower floors. You weren’t complaining about your room, however. You were very grateful for the place you'd been given, especially since it was fully covered through scholarships you had landed in high school. 

 

“I’m back”, you said as you unlocked the door. Not that it mattered much. Your roommate had left you within a week of seeing your face. You couldn’t blame them though, because after all, the rumors could get pretty vicious sometimes. Shivering, you dropped your bag onto your bed and changed into sweatpants and a tattered old jacket, and put your hair in a loose bun. Finally relaxed, you sprawled out on the unused bed on the other side of the room, and let out a laugh. This was one of your only safe zones, and you intended to enjoy it for at least an hour.

 

By the time your stomach woke you up from your nap it was nearly 7:00 in the afternoon. Your already chilled room had seemingly frozen over at the cold winter air. Standing up quickly, you threw on another sweatshirt and the thickest scarf you could find. As you were walking through the door, you stopped by the mirror on the wall to check yourself out. You fixed your bun, but other than that, you were satisfied with your puffy marshmallow appearance. All those layers made you look at least two times wider.  _ I guess that's the advantage of everyone hating you,  _ you chuckled to yourself, doubling back to pick up your bag from the bed. _ You don’t have to care what you look like.  _

 

Walking down the three flights of stairs moderately warmed you up, but the sharp chilled air outside was able to still pierce into you. What made it even worse is the diner you were going to was more than five miles away. Reaching your third stop sign, you looked around carefully before taking a sharp turn into the alleyway. It was the only way you could ensure that no one would follow you. You’d walked this way dozens of times before, each time trying to take a different and more complicated route. After all, this bar and diner was no ordinary one. It was run by a monster, mainly for monsters. By the time you reached the diner it was already 8:50. Looking through the door as you pushed it open you could already tell you were the only customer. 

 

“Hey, Grillby”, you called and waved, and the gentle bartender motioned for you to sit in the seat in front of him. He wasn’t one for words, but after the day you had neither were you. 

 

“I’ll have the usual, please.”

 

As he left to make your meal you laughed at the fact that you sat at the bar every time you came, but had never even tasted alcohol before. You couldn’t help it! Grillby was one of your most treasured friends...and he was also a fire monster. That meant a lot coming from the winter cold.

 

After resting your bag against your stool, you finally felt your face starting to warm up. Grillby came back a few minutes later with a steaming warm burger and fries, and two bottles of ketchup. Setting your order down in front of you, he took a step back and started looking you up and down.

 

“What”, you asked, tearing your eyes from the only meal you’d seen all day. “Do I have something on my face?”

 

Grillby just shook his head and let out a gruff laugh. Unable to resist the meal any longer, you started squirting mounds of ketchup on your fries and burger. The fries were crisp and salty, and the burger was so well made that you felt like crying after every bite.  _ Why can’t Blackmount University serve food like this?  _ Not like it mattered, anyways. You didn’t care if they were serving up gold, you just wanted to go to Grillby’s. The calming jukebox music and the warmth and acceptance you received from this place could never be replaced. After finishing your meal, you let out a bittersweet sigh before placing your textbook and coffee-coated notes on the bar. 

 

“...what happened?”

 

“Oh, nothing! I just dropped my coffee in class this morning...you know how much of a klutz I can be.”

 

“..........what  _ really  _ happened?”

 

The slight harshness in his voice startled you, and your eyes shot up just in time to see his fire body flicker a bit. Grillby knew more about you than anyone. He knew your dreams, your ambitions, all the way down to the way you lie. You wanted to tell him that everything had been getting worse. That the meal he made for you was the only one you’d had all day. That you didn’t know when you could afford another.  _ But it just doesn’t seem right...monsters have their own problems, too. What good will complaining do?  _

 

Grillby could sense you tightening up, and let out a breath to release his anger. Softly smiling, he turned to the side and walked around the bar before taking the seat next to you. He knew you had read the anger on his face, and wasn’t sure how to go about now. After all, it was rare that Grillby was ever angry. 

 

“I know you were just asking as a friend, Grillby. I know you only ever have good intentions. It’s just...the pressure sometimes gets to me, you know? All the talk about monsters and humans. I just wish it would end. We have different schools, different streets, and everyone seems to ignore it.”

“....not everyone ignores it. You, and other humans as well. They are reaching out with us to try and end this. More shops are opening between our two towns, and even Blackmount just signed to have a monster student attend.”

 

This statement shook you from your bad mood, causing you to jerk your head towards Grillby so fast that he nearly knocked over the glass next to him. 

 

“What did you just say?”

 

“Blackmount University...an old friend just of mine just got offered a full ride…and he took it.”

 

You could barely see Grillby’s look of worry through the swirling and darkening of the world around you. A nauseous sensation had engulfed you, causing you to hunch over. Your hands gripped your hair almost as if you were in physical pain. 

 

“Grillby,” you spat “you can’t imagine what is going to happen to him. I told you about the sympathizer.... do you…. _ understand _ ...how much worse it would be if they saw and actual monster!? Why would you do this….HOW could you do this!? What if they assault him, what if they follow him home…..” You let out a short gasp, anger and confusion clouding your thoughts nearly as much as tears clouded your eyes. “What if….they turn him to dust…..”

 

“.............................They won’t.”

 

“DO YOU EVEN HEAR YOURSELF RIGHT NOW.” You couldn’t understand why Grillby was so calm about this whole situation. Why he was acting like  _ you  _ were the stupid one. Standing up, you started hastily shoving papers into your backpack before turning to face him again. 

You opened your mouth to start yelling again, but Grillby cut you off this time.

 

“....Well, no. It’s not that they won’t. I mean………...they just  _ can’t.”  _

 

“What do you mean they can’t dust him?”

 

Grillby, blatantly averting your eyes, then stood up and went back around the counter.

 

“Grillby……?”

 

“....................”

 

“Grillby…..”

 

“.....................”

 

Signing, you turned towards the door and started out, not looking back. As you opened the glass and felt the whip of the cold, you finally realized the extent of Grillby’s words. 

 

_ A monster was coming to Blackmount. An incredibly strong one at that. One that couldn’t die.  _

 

The sadness from the bartenders unwillingness to cooperate and the anger at his refusal to listen stung your eyes. Choking back the tears, you walked down the street gradually slowing until you unknowingly came to a complete stop. The street was empty and unlit, except for a single lamp which you stood under, trying to compose your thoughts. Had this been the human part of town, you would have feared getting mugged or raped.

 

_ But this isn’t the human part of town. This is where monsters live. Where people can walk alone and not have to worry about...humans.  _

 

Except now one monster did. And he would soon get to experience first-hand the disgusting nature of human beings, if he hadn’t already.

 

_ It...won’t be like last time. I won’t let it. I will stand up against them this time. It just can’t end like it did before. No one should have to suffer for their beliefs like that...Even if it means revealing everything. Even if it means giving up everything I have worked for---- _

 

A light tap on your shoulder nearly stopped your heart along with your thoughts. You jerked your head around so fast you ended up headbutting the stranger behind you. 

 

“AH! Sorry, I didn’t mean to do that!”

 

“Heh...don’t worry about it, kid.”

 

And then it struck you. This was no human or monster you had ever seen before. Unintentionally, you took a giant step backwards. This monster was a skeleton-type. The snow ripping by your face made it difficult to see clearly, but it appeared he didn’t even have eyes. Instead were two soft, glowing orbs in the sockets. He had a ginormous smile plastered on his face, and wore a giant blue fur-lined snow jacket. Despite the freezing temperatures he was in black gym shorts and...slippers? You must have been staring for longer than you realized, because before long he had put his hands in his pockets and was turning to leave.

 

_ OF COURSE HE WANTS TO LEAVE. You were just staring at him like he was some sort of zoo animal for the past minute. What the heck is wrong with you. _

 

‘Wait! I’m….I’m sorry for staring. I didn’t mean to be rude I promise. It’s just the first time I’ve seen a skeleton type...OH not that it’s a bad thing or anything! I mean...I’m sorry for bumping into you once again…”

 

“Like I said, it's no big deal…”

 

Shivering now, you gave him the friendliest smile you could muster under the circumstances from the day. He was now fully facing you, and for a split second you swore you saw the lights of his eyes up-down your body. It was gone in an instant though, replaced with a brighter smile and an extended hand. 

 

“...nice to meet ya.”


	2. Blackmount University

Your teeth were obviously chattering, but your curiosity overrode your desire for heat at the moment. Shaking his chilled hand, you intentionally lingered for longer than you should have. It was rare for you to meet new monsters in general, nonetheless ones you didn’t even know existed!

 

“M-m-my name i-is ________...w-what's y-ours…?”

 

“Sans. Sans the skeleton....”

 

He seemed to have noticed you lingering, even though it was nearly a fraction of a second, because as soon as it was over he put both hands securely back into his pockets. He sighed as he looked your quivering body up and down, more obviously this time.

 

_Oh no, was that an agitated sigh. Am I being too straightforward? Does he...not like humans?_

 

“...Listen, kid, I’d love to stay and _chill_ …” Sans winked at you and gave a little shrug before continuing. “...But I really think that I should get going.”

 

You wanted to protest, wanted to say something, but deep down inside you knew you couldn’t stay for much longer. You could nearly feel the frostbite setting in to your fingertips. Your teeth were chattering too much to respond to him, so you just smiled sadly and nodded. Sans said goodbye and walked off, humming a strange tune and stepping through the snow in slippers as if it were nothing. As you watched him go, it dawned on you what had just occurred. A friendly monster, most likely new to town, just stopped to talk to you, and all you did was observe him and treat him like he was an animal. Frowning, and feeling the tears well up once again, you turned to leave, but something grabbed your arm ever so lightly. Turning to meet it, it was….Sans?

 

_But I just saw him walk off down the road in the other direction……….?_

 

He seemed out of breath, and averting your eyes, he whipped off his jacket and placed it on your shoulders.

 

“....cheer up.”

 

“S-S-Sans, wha--”

 

Before you could say anything, he seemingly dissolved into thin air.

 

_Oh, God. I’m losing it. I’m actually losing my mind. I’m going to freeze to death in this icy hell._

 

You didn’t have time to think any further. All you did was run. You ran down the street and around the corner and through the alleyway all the way to your dorm room. Even after you had locked the door and sat on you bed for a good hour, it still didn’t make any sense to you. According to your research, monsters couldn’t dissolve like that.

 

_Maybe….I just hallucinated Sans entirely….?_

 

A quick pat at your side debunked that theory. You were wearing his jacket. For some reason, a monster you barely knew had given you the jacket off of his own back in the street, and then vanished. Shoving your hand into the pockets to think, you feel something in the left side. It was a small note, written in what you assumed to be his handwriting.

 

***you can give it back to me sometime soon**

 

“ARGH. What am I supposed to do about all of this!?”

 

After ruffling your hair in deep thought for the next 30 minutes, you finally decide that it is best to save all your remaining energy for tomorrow's chemistry exam. A burning shower revived all of your skin and nerves for the most part, and after folding all the clothes (including Sans jacket), you were more than ready for bed.

 

____________________________________________________________

 

-BEEP- -BEEP- -BEEP-

 

Groaning at the early morning, you slammed the alarm off with your fist, managing to catapult your phone across the room. This was almost tradition for you. In about an hour you were dressed, brushed, and ready to go. You grabbed your phone off the vacant bed, and slung your backpack lazily around your shoulder. The first class you had was anatomy. Realizing that you didn’t have any money for breakfast, you just decided to sit and wait in the classroom until class started. About 10 minutes passed by alone, until you gave up and slowly laid yourself across the table, with your face towards the door. It wasn’t long before a figure showed up outside.

 

“Um...I’m the new transfer…?

 

Before you had time to try and pinpoint the familiar voice, the door opened and Sans slowly shuffled in. His eye sockets widened when he saw you, and maintained their wideness as he glanced around at the empty room. After a few seconds he walked over and sat down in the empty seat next to you. The clothes he wore were different from yesterday. He had on blue basketball shorts, a baggy black t-shirt, and white socks with black slippers. He looked different without his jacket on, but you kind of liked it….?

 

“So you’re the monster friend that Grillby said would be coming here.”

 

The small talk broke the silence emanating from both of you, and distracted you from the weird thoughts you’d just been having.

 

“Yup. That’s me….Although he did mention you didn’t think the news was as _monster_ -ously exciting as he hoped you would…”

 

His face had a strained smile on it as he looked into his lap, fidgeting with his fingers and leaning ever-so-slightly away from you. Although he was laughing at his own joke, you couldn’t help but feel that he was nervous. He then looked directly at you with black sockets, ready to observe your every response. He was probing you. It was at this exact moment that you knew you had to decide.

 

_If I tell him that I said it because I don’t want any monsters at my school, he would probably believe that lie. Heck, he may even leave the school out of frustration. It could protect him._

 

But you knew you couldn’t do it. How could you? Sans had done nothing but treat you as a friend, even when he knew so little about you. Sure, he was overly apprehensive, but most likely some human assholes had given him good reason to be. Reaching into your backpack, you pulled out the coffee-stained notebook and set it on the table between the two of you.

 

“I was just nervous because I know how ridiculous the harassment can get here. I’m sorry if it came off as...well...anything else.”

 

At this he started chuckling deeply, the lights in his eyes brighter than you’d ever seen them. You felt your face getting red as he scooted his seat closer to you so he could read your notes. Spending only a few seconds on each page, he quickly flipped through the entirety of your notebook. Satisfied, he leaned his head forward onto the desk, and started to fall asleep.

 

_Alright, he definitely eased up quicker than I expected._

Giving him a slight tap on the shoulder, you waited until the lights of his eyes focused on you before speaking. “Listen...I know mornings can be rough, but at least read some of my notes so you don’t get completely left behind.”

 

At this statement he chuckled once again, sitting up and resting his head on his hand with his entire body facing you.

 

“Already did,” he said with a wink.

 

_So, he thinks he’s funny, huh? Well, I don’t. Does he even understand how stressful of a day this will be for him!? I have to study for hours every day just to------_

 

“Alright alright. I can tell you don’t believe me. How ‘bout a quick quiz then?”

 

Eager to prove him wrong, you snatched the notebook off the table, and made sure to hold it completely out of eyeshot before flipping to the hardest section you could think of. Subconsciously you began smirking at him, to which he laughed so hard, light blue tears welled up in his eye sockets. You waited with your arms playfully crossed for him to stop.

 

“________ are cells that electrically insulate neuronal axons in the central nervous system. This electrical insulation is referred to as ________.”

 

Sans stared off into the distance for a few seconds before replying, “The first blank is Oligodendrocytes and the second blank is myelin.”

 

_Sure, he got it right. But could have had that one memorized._

 

“The cell body of a neuron is the ____.”

 

“Soma.”

 

“The typical neuronal resting membrane potential measures approximately ______.”

 

“-70mV.”

 

_His responses are getting quicker… let’s see if he can get the hardest one._

 

“At the axon terminals, voltage-gated _________ channels open in response to the arriving action potential. This triggers _________  vesicles to---”

 

“Calcium, synaptic, neurotransmitters and synaptic cleft.”

 

“Oh, come on, Sans! You didn’t even let me finish the question,” you whined, and soon enough both of you were laughing. It felt nice. Within the only twenty minutes of him being here, you already felt like he was a close friend.

 

_I could get used to this. If Sans stays, maybe Blackmount University won’t be so bad after all._

 

Both of your laughter quickly died off at the sound of a door being opened. In filed three girls, one of which you recognized as the girl who pulled the coffee stunt earlier. At the sight of Sans, their chattering stopped, and for a few moments they just stood in the doorway with wide eyes and gawking mouths.

 

“Ahem, ladies. Is there a reason you are so kindly blocking the entrance to my classroom?” The professor asked while standing outside impatiently. Even though you couldn't see him, you were able to hear his short foot tapping vigorously on the tile outside. Seconds later him and more students walked in, nearly all of them with a range of looks on their faces. It didn’t take long for the professor to gain control of this situation, however.

 

“Ah yes, you must be the new student. I’ve heard wonderful things about you, boy.”

 

Sans stood up quietly, and moved to the front podium where the professor was standing. Extending a hand, he smiled wide and said “Likewise. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Dr. Bennet.” The professor grinned wider than you had ever seen him before, and shook his hand quite enthusiastically, causing Sans plastered smile to falter a little bit. No one seemed to notice this small mannerism but you.

 

_He must not be very big on physical contact._

 

“Ahh. I haven't heard that name in many a year. I go by Dr. B now. Keeps me sounding young. Anyways,” he chortled, glancing at the seat next to you “Please feel free to sit next to anyone in my classroom. Just note, whoever you sit by will be your partner for the rest of the semester.”

 

At this, all the students who had been previously watching rushed to their seats to fill in their tables. Not that it mattered to you or Sans. He just sauntered back to the seat he had been previously sitting in. Each table only had two seats, after all. He looked at you, and you looked at him, both knowing what this partnership would mean.

 

“Want _tibia_ my anatomy partner?”

 

Silence hung in the room as all eyes fixed directly on you, waiting for your response.

 

“Sure,” you spoke a little too loudly, laughing internally at some of the faces that cringed around you. “That is, as long as you promise not to make any more stupid puns.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank for reading this second chapter! I still feel so inexperienced, but I'm glad at least someone enjoys the story!
> 
> I'm trying to write and upload a chapter every few days. Its harder than I thought... :)


	3. Phone Number

Anatomy class went by slower than it usually did. You realized it may have been partially due to that fact that you started acting really… weird? Although you were determined to update all of your notes, you couldn’t help but glance at Sans from time to time, observing him. Out of the corner of your eye, you noticed yourself taking in all of his features. First his bare head which appeared to be made of solid bone, then his facial features which moved much too fluidly to be solid. You felt your eyes trailing down to his hand as your palm tingled, remembering what it felt like to touch him. You tried to snap yourself out of it, reminding yourself that you barely even knew Sans. But that hand just looked so…

 

_ Oh shit, I’ve been staring! Ok, calm down, maybe he didn’t notice…? _

 

Hopefully thinking, you casually glanced up at his eye sockets. The orbs were dead-set on Dr. B. Letting out a small sigh of relief, you made sure to put your full attention on class the rest of the hour. Before long, you heard the glorious words “Class dismissed” and the shuffling of feet as students hastily fled the room. Walking out, you and Sans both thanked the professor, to which he just responded with boisterous laughter. It wasn’t until you both were halfway down the hall that he spoke.

 

“So...where ya heading next, kid?”

 

“Chemistry”, you shuddered, remembering the exam you would have to take. “You?”

 

Reaching into his shorts pockets, he pulled out a shredded schedule. Just from where you were standing, you could recognize a few of the classes on the list. He shot you a smile after reading it, and handed the sheet to you. For just a split second, your fingers touched. Trying to hide your red face and perverted thoughts, you pretended to be entranced by the schedule. You had been staring at it for a while before you actually read it…..

 

_ How odd...I feel like I’ve seen this schedule before? _

 

“THIS LOOKS JUST LIKE MY SCHEDULE!!” Gasping, you shoved the paper right against his face in excitement. “BUT HOW!? The odds of any student at Blackmount sharing the same schedule is slim to none! You want to be a doctor, too? So cool! You know we---” Your excited rant was cut short by Sans grabbing your arm to slowly remove it from his face. You hadn’t noticed it, but while his face was covered by the paper, it had managed to gain a bright blue shade.  _ Wow, so skeleton monsters can change color, too? _

 

“So, _________, we are going to have all of our classes together...every day?”

 

Giggling, you looked down at the paper once again, to double check. 

“Yup! We should see each other every single day. Sans this is great!!”

 

Shuffling forward, he closed his sockets and smiled, making the same humming noise you’d heard him make the night before. Watching him from behind, you realized that he was only about 2 inches taller than you. He seemed so much more relaxed now, even though he was forced to deal with the racists at BU already. You followed behind him, wishing you could just hang out with Sans forever.

 

_ As friends, of course! _

 

__________________________________________________________________________

 

The rest of the day occurred just like the beginning. Sans and you were both widely avoided, and showered with looks of disdain and surprise. Class was spent by you trying to refocus after staring at his hands, or eyes, or lips...and before long, the day was over. Packing up your backpack and looking around the empty lab room, you started snickering.

 

“What’s so funny?”

 

“It’s like we’ve got cooties.I just can’t believe these are working, functional adults.”

 

You laughed hard enough to bust a vein at Sans confused expression, obviously stuck on the cooties statement. You considered explaining it, but you decided it would just ruin the moment. Even though he wasn’t sure of what you thought was so funny, after a minute he couldn’t help but join in. 

 

“Easy, kid. You’re going to choke or something.”

 

Catching your breath, you let out a tired sigh. You didn’t know much about Sans, but you felt that this was a great opportunity to begin.

 

_ Just start with something simple. _

 

“Hey, Sans? Want to play a game?”

 

After pausing for a second to closely think about the situation, he turned back to you with a wink and said “Sure, kid. But I gotta warn you, my knowledge of human games is  _ bone _ dry.”

 

Rolling your eyes, you motioned for him to sit down on the seat next to you. 

 

“Alrighty then. This is a question game. I’ll ask you a question about yourself, and you have to answer. Then you do the same to me.” After waiting for Sans to nod, you continued. “I’ll go first…..hrm…...Why do you call me ‘kid’ all the time?”

“Well...the only human I know personally is 9 now, so I guess the habit just stuck with all humans.” At this he winked and crossed his arms, quite obviously up-downing the entirety of your body once again. You felt so exposed, even though you were wearing pants and a long-sleeve shirt.

 

“My turn...how old  _ are _ you, then?”

 

Your face turned red as you realized how easily your question backfired on you. So easily, you were going to have to expose the reason why so many people hated you. 

 

“I….I just turned 21…What about you?”

 

At first he seemed surprised, but in a flash he was back to his usual warm smiling self. 

 

“I’m 24, almost 25. So I guess to me you  _ are  _ a kid, huh? You aren’t very good at this game, are ya bud? Cause it’s already my turn again.” He looked at you thoughtfully, most likely noticing your red face. “My question is...wanna go to Grillby’s? I know a shortcut.”

 

Relieved that you didn’t have to answer any more embarrassing questions, you shook your head excitedly, before making a depressing realization.

 

_ I don’t have enough money for food tonight.  _

 

“Ah...actually...I forgot that I can’t. I need to...study tonight. I can probably go tomorrow, though!”

 

Sans looked at you as if he knew you were lying, but only shrugged and nodded in response. He picked up his bag and slugged one strap over his shoulder, about to leave. Although nothing about him changed, you couldn’t help but feel that he was….dejected?

 

“Wait! Before you leave”, you said, scrambling to get your phone out of your bag “Give me your phone number!”

 

_ Ah shit, too direct! Too direct! He knows he knows he kn-- _

 

“Sure thing, kid.”

 

Sans leaned so far forward, your heads nearly touched. Looking at something on his phone, he then turned it towards you, so you could see the number. You hoped he didn’t notice your shaky hands and quivering breath as you typed in the digits. His smell was like a mix of fresh snow and ketchup. Despite the odd combination, it smelt oddly satisfying. Wanting more of it, you leaned forward...

 

...a little  _ too  _ forward. 

 

Quick arms caught you as you started to fall off the lab stool, and for nearly 30 seconds both of you just sat, frozen in place. All you could do was look at the ground and hope the moderately setting sun would provide some excuse for your beet-red face.

 

_ I need to get out of here before I embarrass myself again. _

 

“Thanks for the number...I’ll make sure to message you later, Sans” you said as you looked up, expecting to see his standard smile or maybe even a wink. Instead you were met with a face you would have never imagined on him.

 

He was staring right at you, his entire face glowing in a vibrant blue. His eye sockets were wide and his common smile was gone. You suddenly became much more aware of the position between both of you. Sans had his arms around you and his hands on your back, holding you in a steady position close to him. Both of you were leaning forward so close, even your seats were touching. 

 

“....S….Sans….?” You whispered with a nervous giggle, unsure of what was going on or what would happen next. Your small voice seemed to snap Sans back out of whatever trance he was in, causing him to jerk his arms back and shoot straight up. 

 

_ Wow, I’ve never seen him move that fast. _

 

“Right. Cool. Awesome. Talk to ya later, kid. Gotta go to Grilby’s!”

 

Within a flash he was gone, leaving you alone in the room still leaning forward, the places which he had touched tingling with heat. You suddenly felt sad that he left in such a hurry, and couldn’t help but wonder why he froze like that...then, you remembered something.

 

_ The same thing happened with Dr. B when they were shaking hands. How could I have been so stupid, he clearly dislikes physical contact! _

 

Humming proudly at your sleuthing skills, you threw on your backpack, and set out for your dorm room. After moping in hunger on your bed for half of the evening, you looked up at the jacket folded on your dresser. Sans jacket. As if someone were watching you, you carefully looked around the bedroom suspiciously before snatching it into your arms.

 

_ I know this isn’t what hugging him would feel like....but it’s all I have. _

 

Suddenly, an idea dawned. Carrying the jacket to your bedside, you grabbed your phone and snapped a picture of it, making sure the only thing in the frame was the jacket itself. You pulled up Sans contact, sending him the picture.

**Can I give this back to you at Grillby’s tomorrow?**

 

Not expecting an immediate answer, you began catapulting your phone off the desk, aiming for the unused bed. You laughed, realizing that the phone nearly always hits the pillow of the bed perfectly. This continued for a little while, before a small buzzing noise made your heart stop. 

 

***sure. See ya in the morning.**

 

_ Phew, good. It seems that he isn’t mad at me for the physical contact earlier. _

 

Laughing loudly, you swaddled the jacket closer to you. It smelled so much like Sans, it was all you could do to not squeal at the day you’d had. You finally took a stand against racism, and in doing so you had gained a precious friend. Just imagining Sans made your knees weak. Lazily thrown across your bed, you began to think of all the questions you had for him. Where did he come from? Did he have family? Why did he sign everything he wrote or typed with a “ * ”? You wanted to go to sleep, but you knew you had work to do. You groaned as you turned your laptop on, messages from customers flooding into your email. Scrolling through, you noticed an email from your co-worker.

 

**I MUST LET YOU KNOW THAT I THINK THIS PUZZLE IS SO EASY YOU SHOULD GIVE IT A TRY!!!**

 

Laughing, you clicked the URL, which brought you to the homepage. There were many advantages working for an online game and puzzle webpage, and times like this made you feel like it wasn’t even work at all. After a few tries you solved the puzzle, and replied to your co-worker COOLSKELETON95. He only sent you the puzzles he thought were the absolute hardest, or ones that he needed help solving in order to show a customer. He was your closest friend in your online job, and his funny personality never ceased to entertain you.

 

**Here you go, Papyrus.**

 

You knew you wouldn’t have to wait long for a reply from him. You both had decided awhile back to coordinate your work times, so you could always talk.

 

**HUMAN! WAS IT NOT ATROCIOUSLY COMPLEX?**

 

**It was very...unexpected, I’ll give you that!**

 

**NYEH! I ALMOST FORGOT TO TELL YOU! MY ENTIRE FAMILY IS MOVING SOON, TO A TOWN CALLED ‘BLACKMOUNT’. WOULD IT HAPPEN TO BE THE SAME TOWN OF WHICH YOU DWELL? I KNOW YOU MENTIONED SOMETHING ABOUT A UNIVERSITY OF SORTS BEING THERE...**

 

**YES! OMG Papyrus that is my town! That is so great!! How long will it take you to move here?**

 

**I’M NOT SURE. SOMETIME SOON. WE ARE COMING IN TO VISIT TOMORROW. THE ENTIRE FAMILY HAS KEPT IT THE TIGHTEST OF SECRETS, SINCE MY BROTHER NOW GOES TO BU!**

 

**You didn’t tell me that!**

 

You couldn’t believe it! Papyrus was coming to your town! Not only that, but the brother he always talks so much about was going to your college! Of course, you had never seen him before. Heck, you hadn’t even seen Papyrus before…

 

**Papyrus, do you think you could meet me at a bar named Grillby’s tomorrow? It’s alright if it is asking too much, it’s just that I would love to meet you after all these months of working together!**

 

**OF COURSE I WILL! THE GREAT PAPYRUS WILL MOST CERTAINLY BE PRESENT!**

 

After around three hours of your basic online customer service work, you said goodbye and shut down your laptop. Tying your hair up, you hopped into the bathroom for a quick shower. Everything was going to be wonderful tomorrow, you could just feel it! You would go to class, meet up with Papyrus at Grillby’s, give Sans back his...jacket…..at……...Grillby’s.

 

_ OH NO I FORGOT I’M ALREADY MEETING WITH SANS. _

 

Drying yourself off, you tried to think of a way this meetup wouldn’t be a problem. After a while your exhausted brain gave way, and you felt yourself barely able to crawl into bed before everything turned black. 

 

_ It’ll all work out... _


	4. The Day Everything Changed

The next morning you arrived to class early again, trying to leave yourself some time to think about how to get out of the jam you were in. You didn’t want to ditch Sans again, but this was also a rare chance for you to meet your online friend!

 

_ Maybe I can just meet up with them at the same time…? _

 

Groaning, you buried your face in your hands. Of course you couldn’t do that. No, you would just have to meet up with them at different times. Placing your phone on the table tiredly, you began typing your response.

 

**Hey, Papyrus. Does 8 work for you?**

 

In less than a minute you received his reply.

 

**OF COURSE! SEE YOU SOON HUMAN!**

 

Your plan was simple. You and Sans would go straight from class to Grillby’s, stay for about two hours, then leave at 7:30. Papyrus would be meeting you at 8, so that would provide cushion time in case he came early. Without meaning to, you let out a small snicker, then looked at your phone triumphantly, excited for the night ahead.

 

_ Why didn’t I see that the solution was so easy!? Tonight is going to be the bes--- _

 

“What’s up, messaging your boyfriend?”

 

You turned away from your thoughts to see Jeremy peering right at you, smiling through his teeth. Suddenly you became much more conscious of the empty room. Seeing your tense face, he let out a small laugh, hands upward as if pleading for you to calm down. 

 

“Chill, dude. It’s ok. I just want to hang, and you know...talk”, he said as he glided into the seat next to you, smiling kindly...You knew this game. “So anyways...I heard some under-freak is going here now, and you’ve decided to get all nice and chummy with him.”

 

His laugh turned more bitter as he slowly slung his arm around you, leaning in close and scrunching his eyebrows in a smirk which made you wish you’d never woken up that morning. Normally you only had to deal with his manipulations once a month when he blackmailed you into giving up your paycheck, but it was clear that he wasn’t here for your money. Jeremy’s face darkened as he gripped your shoulder painfully tight, making you wince and forcing you to finally meet his eyes.

 

“You must think you’re so smart, huh? Using scum like that just to get out of paying me. Even parading around campus with him. You can’t protect him from me or the others… heck we could all dust him tomorrow if we wanted to. Did you really think I would just sit and let this happen!?”

 

“......I’m not.”

 

The arm around you slid slightly towards your neck and the hand tightened on your bone, pressing and making you remember an inconvenient biology lesson about how easily the clavicle could be broken. 

 

_ This is it….This is where I draw the line. _

 

“You’re not what?”

 

“I’m not...using him, Jeremy. I would never use him like that. I became friends with Sans knowing scum like you would hate it. Do or say what you want, but I’m NOT putting but with your bullshi---”

 

As Jeremy’s hand shot from your lower neck to your throat, you couldn’t help but feel somehow relieved that you had finally been freed from the torment of that cage he built for you. Within a second both hands were around your neck, squeezing just enough to have their intent known. You and he both knew he could kill you. But he didn’t. Jeremy was waiting for something. His eyes were cold and his face was twisted into a vicious smile. Tears started streaming down your face as you sputtered and opened your mouth, trying to get enough air to scream for help. 

 

“Thats right, go on. Beg for that dirty Grounder to come and save you.” 

 

Jeremy released your neck, grabbing your shirt instead, and forcing you to face a small garbage bin by the professor’s desk. His loud and dark laughter made your stomach churn, and fear gripped your mind. This man was unpredictable, and somehow deep down inside you knew he would very easily kill if it suited him. All you could do was gasp for air and try to refill your lungs enough to ease the splotches in your eyesight. Realizing you had no intention of calling for help, he began to shake you violently back and forth, once or twice slamming a part of you against the table.

 

“I’M GOING TO DUST HIM AND PUT HIS REMAINS RIGHT HERE IN THE TRASH WHERE HE BELONGS. NO ONE WILL EVEN NOTICE HE’S GONE.”

 

“NO!”

 

Jeremy’s face gained a plastic smile, his eyes glazed over with fake softness. His arms still gripped you tightly, but his entire demeanor changed. 

 

“....Beg for him, ___________. It doesn’t have to be this way. You...you’re like me. We both work as hard as we can to get what we want. I know he has this class with you. You and him were alone yesterday morning too, right? Just call out to him. It’ll just be us three. No one has to know. There won’t be any evidence, trust me...I’ve done this before.”

 

Suddenly your soul felt like it was on fire. Your breath quickened as you heard the cries of the nameless monsters that had been brutally slaughtered by Jeremy, by his friends, by the countless others in the world. 

 

-splat-

 

“I would rather die.”

 

The monster murderer froze, eyes widening at the realization that you had spit on him. He slowly lifted one of his arms, gently touching the dripping splatter across his cheek. His face was twisted with rage, his eyes dark and void of any feelings other than the desire to kill. A few seconds later his hand was hovering high above his head, and you closed your eyes tight, bracing for impact…

 

But nothing happened…

 

Slowly opening your eyes, you were surprised to see a glowing blue aura surrounding Jeremy’s entire arm. Sweating, he tried frantically to move it, but to no avail. 

 

“It’s rude to talk about someone who’s not here with you, dontchya think?”

 

With Jeremy still gripping your shirt, you craned your neck to see Sans standing directly behind you. His eye sockets were jet black, his left eye glowing cyan and a half smile loosely slapped across the entirety of his face. His left hand was held out, facing Jeremy’s glowing arm. Jeremy was left squirming and tightly gripping your shirt, holding you in place.

 

“Now I’m going to give you three seconds to let go of her right now, or you  _ really  _ aren't going to like what happens next.”

 

“STAY OUT OF THIS, GROUNDER!”

 

Sans slowly raised his hand higher, causing Jeremy to yell in pain. Suddenly, the blue spread from just his arm to his entire upper body. “One.”

 

“.....I…….could dust….you…RIGHT….NOW”

 

Jeremy's yell turned into a full fledged scream as the blue aura engulfed his entire body. You heard small popping noises as tears filled his eyes, and his body began convulsing. Quickly, you pried yourself from his death grip, falling to the floor and unable to move your body as you brokenly hugged yourself and tried to stop crying. You could hear footsteps growing louder in the hallway, running to see the source of the painful screams. 

 

“I’m glad I didn’t have to get to three. It would’ve been real bad, buddy. Oh yeah, and here’s a piece of advice….”

 

Sans arm dropped suddenly, bringing the entirety of Jeremy’s body down with it. Quickly slinging your backpack over his shoulder, he gently lifted you up off the ground, nearly emotionless as he looked down at you in his arms. 

 

“If you try shit like this again, it won’t be just your arm that’s broken.”

 

You heard voices approaching, and then suddenly everything dissolved into blackness.

 

__________________________________________________________________________

  
  


To you, it looked as if everything was melting. The grim scene of the room at your college evaporated in a split second, replaced by a world comprised of pixels and blurs. Tightly gripping his shirt, you looked up at Sans for reassurance, but were surprised to find him just as hazy as your surroundings. You felt nauseous.

 

“Sorry, I know”, he whispered deeply. “It’ll wear off in about a minute.”

 

Sure enough about 45 seconds later you were cautiously glancing around the room, feeling much more comfortable after realizing where you were. Grillby’s was empty, the floor wiped and cleaned perfectly, all except a sleeping bag on the floor and the pile of trash next to it. You looked up once again to ask Sans several questions you had, but his eyes were still black, devoid of joy. 

 

“Sans….Sans….”

 

He was motionless. You couldn’t help but smile deeply at the realization that he cared about you much more than you had expected. 

 

“Sans”, you said louder, poking his face. It seemed to snap him back out of whatever trance he was in, although it did not bring back the lights of his eyes.

 

“Sans, you can put me down now.”

 

Standing on your feet after all of that was weird, and for the first few seconds you had to lean against Sans for support. He looked concerned when he saw your shaking legs, but he knew you would insist on standing anyways, so he decided not to say anything. With neither of you speaking, you decided to look around Grillby’s for something to eat. Sans stood in the center of the room staring at absolutely nothing lost in his own thoughts. After stealing a bag of chips from behind the counter, you sat down facing Sans, munching away and trying to slow down your heart. Within a few minutes he finally spoke.

 

“Who was that.”

 

Gently laying your chips on the counter, you turned back to look at Sans directly.

 

“That was Jeremy. One of the sickest human beings I’ve ever met in my life. Did you really break his arm?”

 

Seeing Sans nod slowly made you finally understand the situation you had just been in. There was no going back now. 

 

“Why...didn’t you just listen to him?”

 

The question was whispered so quietly you could barely hear it from where you were sitting, but the brokenness in his tone struck your heart cold. Standing up and briskly walking over to him, you could feel your body ache from Jeremy’s assault.

 

“What do you mean by that, Sans?”

 

“....why didn’t you just follow him. Why didn’t you just go along with what he was saying?” A hint of vibrant blue tears welled up in his sockets as he said this, and his perpetually closed teeth began somehow chattering and grinding. “You don’t even  _ know  _ me. What he was saying shouldn’t have mattered to you...and look at you now. This….this is all my fault.” He was shaking now, both hand gripping his head in remorse. “I should have come earlier, I should have known something was wrong, I should hav--”

 

“Sans,” you said, wrapping both arms around him in a the tightest embrace you could muster. “Stop.”

 

His breath quickened as he went silent. You couldn’t see his face, but you didn’t have to. Soon you could feel the tears on your shoulder, one of your hands naturally stroking his head as he gripped you tight. After a few minutes you began to speak again.

 

“You didn’t do anything wrong. Sans, you actually saved me.”

 

You paused before continuing, your voice turning dark and deep.

 

“And I would have never done what he was suggesting. Not to a million monsters...not to even one. Sans, it’s ok now. I knew he was going to try something like this eventually, whether you were here or not….and I can’t be grateful enough that you were there for me.”

 

As Sans pulled away from you, all the energy seemed to flood straight out of your body. The world started wobbling as you and he slowly lowered to sit on the sleeping bag on the floor. Any sign of his tears were gone, replaced by two large, glowing orbs and a genuine smile.

 

“Anytime.”

 

Your cheeks flushed as you looked nervously downwards, trying to think of something to distract you from the way you were beginning to feel towards Sans.

 

“So….a little off-the-wall question, Sans, but...um...what exactly is a sleeping bag doing at Grillby’s?”

 

“Oh, that’s mine. My roommate kinda kicked me out after realizing I was a monster. Guess he couldn’t handle the fact that I was such a BONE-afide hottie. So I camp here now. It’s nice and roomy, I guess.”

 

“Wow...that’s awful. My roommate had an issue with me too, but she just packed up and left. Actually, everyone in the rooms around me ditched with her. It’s like I have the plague.”

 

You and Sans laughed, starting to finally unwind, but your laughter was cut short by the loud growling of your stomach. Sans shot up, insisting you stayed sitting, and grabbed your open bag of chips along with three new ones. On the way back, he joked around by placing all the bags on his head like a balancing act. He gave you three of the bags, and started eating the last. You watched him carefully, curious to see if he would open his mouth for once. Somehow, he managed to eat the whole bag without parting his teeth a single time.

 

“Hey, kid. You better eat those before Grillbs comes back, he opens in an hour.  What are you thinking about, anyways? I thought you were starving.”

 

“I am!” Tearing open the bags of chips, you stuffed handfuls in your mouth at a time to prove your point. “I was just curious to see how you’d eat. Because I don’t think I’ve ever seen you part your teeth.”

 

Winking and leaning in closer, his smile grew insanely wide as he whispered seductively.

 

“Maybe I’ll show you one day.”

 


	5. You're Blue Now

“OW!”

 

“Sorry, kid. But you know it’s gonna hurt the first time. Just close your eyes.”

 

Holding your breath and sicking out your arm, you made sure to look away before Sans began to clean your cut again. His bony hands were lightly holding your arm in place, to keep you from squirming in pain. During Jeremy’s rampage, he had slammed your arm pretty hard against the table, managing to bruise and cut it open as several points. You and Sans both knew the cut had to get disinfected, so after a good long laugh he took out the emergency medical kit at Grillby’s and told you to sit on a bar stool.

 

_ It doesn’t change the fact that it still hurts. Sans, closing my eyes isn’t doing anything for the pain! _

 

Opening your eyes and turning to face Sans, you were surprised by the amount concentration in his face. Soon, you noticed yourself slipping into your fantasies again, and closely studying his facial features. 

 

_ I can’t help it that he's so attractive… _

 

“.....Hey? Didjya hear me?”, Sans asked, looking straight at you with a questioning expression on his face. “I said turn around, I think he might’ve cut you on the back of your neck.” Gently, Sans brushed your hair to your side, exposing some nail marks which made him grunt in a deep and hostile voice. You felt it was better to distract him from whatever aggressive thoughts he was having.

 

“Soooooo….I don’t think you and Grillby ever told me how you two met!”

 

Tapping you on the shoulder to let you know he was about to apply the disinfectant, he let out a nostalgic sigh.

 

“Well, me and my little bro moved to Snowdin, and didn’t know anybody there. This was still when all monsters were in the Underground. Anyways, we didn’t have money for food or anything, and then old Grillbs here promised to look out for us until I could get us standing on our own. It was only for a few months, though.”

 

“What were your parents doing? Did you have to move because of their jobs?”

 

“....We don’t have parents.”

 

“Sans I’m so sorry”, you said frantically, whipping around. “I didn’t know and---”

 

“Heh...really, it’s fine. I never met my mother and my dad died when Papyrus was still a kid, so it's not like it matters or anything. Me and my little bro, we do just fine on our own. He’s all the family I’ll ever need. Anyways…………....are you okay?”

 

Standing up and grabbing Sans by the shoulders, your face was only centimeters away from his. After waiting for your response, he started sweating nervously the closer you got, a hint of blue rising on his cheek bones.

 

“Sans….you’re a skeleton monster!”

 

All of the blue instantly drained from his face, his eye sockets narrowing and his eyebrows scrunching up as if you had just said possibly the weirdest sentence he had ever heard.

 

“Yeah….um...kid…………….that's nothin new.”

 

“NO, SILLY! IT ALL MAKES SENSE NOW!”

 

_ COOLSKELETON95 isn’t just a wacky username for Papyrus...HE LITERALLY IS A SKELETON MONSTER! This whole time, I’ve been talking to Sans little brother! That means all those stories Papyrus told me about his big bro….they were all about Sans. HEHEHEH....Papyrus is going to Grillby’s at 8 tonight...I CAN’T WAIT TO SEE THE LOOK ON SANS FACE! _

 

Grabbing Sans hands, you began an upbeat victory dance, and laughed even harder the more confused Sans looked. This whole situation was getting much more of a rise out of him than you had expected. You decided that it would be more fun to stretch it out, so you cleared your throat and walked briskly back to your seat, majorly regretting it as soon as you let go of his hands. Before he could say anything, you turned around and moved your hair to show your neck again, waiting for him to finish cleaning it.

 

“Um….what the heck just happened, kid?”

 

“Oh...it was nothing”, you replied, still purposefully facing with your back to him so he couldn’t see the smile on your face.

 

“Did it have something to do with Papyrus?”

 

_ Ohhh he really wants to know. That's brotherly love for you.  _

 

“Yeah, it turns out he’s one of the coworkers I’m close with on my online job.”

 

“And? What else? I know there's something else you’re not telling me…”

 

_ He’s sharp! But Papyrus said him and the rest of the family wanted to surprise Sans...I can’t just spoil something so huge like that! No, I’ll just have to lie. _

 

Shifting slightly in your seat, you responded. “I already told you everything.”

For a minute everything went dead silent. The cold burning sensation on your neck continued on until you couldn’t bear it anymore, and then it suddenly stopped. You wanted to look over your shoulder and ask Sans why he had been so quiet, but you knew as soon as you faced him you would blab the secret and possibly ruin your friendship with Papyrus. 

 

_ Stay strong, me! Let’s just change the topic. Maybe we can talk about-- _

 

But your thoughts were cut short by an unexpected breath near your ear that sent tingles down your neck.

 

“...tell me.”

 

The incredibly deep voice made you squirm and want to see what kind of facial expression he was making. But you knew you couldn’t. You tried to escape the situation by leaning forward in the stool, but two bony arms wrapped softly around your shoulders, not permitting you to go anywhere. 

 

“S….Sans……”

 

“...tell me”, he whispered again, his mouth pressed against your ear, this time with his entire body pressed against your back. You felt like he was engulfing you, awakening feelings of lust you had never felt before.

 

“I can’t t-tell you Sans...it’s a secret……”

 

Chuckling with his low voice in your ear, you could feel a rough finger gently trace the bones on the back of your neck.

 

“I wonder….if I can make you  _ want  _ to tell me?”

 

Slowly, his hand began running a trail down your spine. From your neck to your back...lower and lower…………….any more and…

 

-RING-

 

You and Sans both turned around to see Grillby standing in the doorway, the bells on the glass door ringing cheerfully. He had a bag on one shoulder and a hot coffee mug in his hand, and looked as if he was about to ask a question...that is, until he looked down at the medical kit on the floor by your stool. In a flash he was in front of to Sans, gripping his shirt tightly and singeing the edges a little.

 

“.....was it you?”

 

“No, Grillby, it wasn’t Sans! It was Jeremy…”

 

Recognizing the name, he set Sans down back onto the floor carefully before bursting into the brightest flames you had seen, the fire on his body growing so hot in some places that you could see blue.

 

“Grillbs...buddy...I’m just as mad as you”, Sans said calmly, stepping in between you and the flame monster. “But I'm gonna need you to tone it down a few notches, or you’re gonna burn the kid.”

 

A few seconds later Grillby was nearly back to his original appearance, except for the occasional outburst of bright blue. You and Sans began telling him all about yesterday and that morning, explaining everyone’s reactions, then Jeremy’s, all the way to Sans patching you up at Grillby’s. (You and Sans made sure to leave out what had been happening as the bartender had walked in.) By the end of the explanation Grillby was pacing around the room and muttering to himself quietly. The room grew silent as you both watched him, Sans arm gently brushing up against yours every now and then, reminding you silently that he still intended to find out about the secret. Grillby slowly paced over to the jukebox and turned on a random tune before continuing his angry walk. The music was calming and before long you could feel your eyes slowly closing as you rocked in between consciousness and sleep.

 

“Grillbs, hehe, looks like someone's BONE-tired, huh?”

 

“...no puns, Sans.”

 

You felt warm and hard arms lift you up and take you somewhere, then set you down on something incredibly soft and comfortable. Bony hands brushed your hair out of your face, and before long it was just you and darkness. Slipping into a relaxed sleep, you could hear hurried and serious talking between two of your closest friends.

 

__________________________________________________________________________

 

When you woke up you quickly realized two things. Number one. You had no idea where you were. And number two. Wherever you were, you were very hungry.

 

Looking down, you realized you were zipped tight in a sleeping bag with a soft pillow underneath your head. 

 

_ Sans. _

 

It was moderately dark, and through a crack in the wall you could see a pair of very fiery legs. Trying to sit up, you ended up banging your head on the top of the room you were in...if it even was a room?

 

“OUCH!”

 

“Heh. Sound’s like she’s finally up.”

 

Suddenly two cabinet doors swung open, the amount of light shining inside that it almost made you physically cringe. Sans was crouching at the entrance, extending a hand and winking as he pulled you out and up to stand.

 

“Good afternoon, princess.”

 

“Ugh….how long was I out?”

 

“Well, it’s 7:50 PM now...so about 11 hours”

 

“ELEVEN!?” Looking around for a clock, you realized where you were. Monsters filled the seats and tables around you, several giggling at your disheveled appearance before giving you the standard afternoon’s greetings. You hair was fluffed every direction, and your shirt was falling off your shoulder and clearly displaying your pale blue bra. You shot Sans a dirty look as he shrugged and laughed, obviously enjoying the entire situation.

 

“Wait...did you say it was 7:50?”

 

“You got it.”

 

“OH CRAP.” Frantically running over to the bags that were thrown in the corner of the room that morning, you checked unlocked your phone to see 12 new emails. None of them from Papyrus.

 

“Whew…”

 

“What’s wrong, kid? You seem kinda dis-DRESSED”, he said, smirking and pointing at your exposed shoulder as some monsters around started giggling. Just as you had finished adjusting your shirt, your scolding session was interrupted by the jingling of the bells attached to the door, and a booming voice.

 

“SANS! IS THAT YOU!?”

 

Within a fraction of a second Sans was plucked off the ground in a hug by a very tall and lanky skeleton, smiling happily and squeezing tightly. Sans, too, looked extremely glad to see the skeleton. 

 

“Hey, Paps. I missed ya, buddy.”

 

Papyrus set Sans down and began laughing, happy tears occasionally dotting his face. After a few pats on the back from Sans, Papyrus returned to his usual energetic self.

 

“NYEH HEH HEH! SANS, I CAME TO MEET A HUMAN THAT I WORK WITH ONLINE. SHE HAS AN INCONCEIVABLE AMOUNT OF RESPECT FOR MY PUZZLES!” 

 

“You mean the one next to me?”

 

Turning, Papyrus looked to the left of Sans at a pair of monsters seated at a table behind him.

 

“SANS. PLEASE BE SERIOUS. THOSE ARE MONSTERS, NOT HUMANS.”

 

“Nope, she’s 100 percent human.”

 

Laughing, you raised your hand slightly, startling Papyrus even though you were nearly right in front of him. You couldn’t help but think about how different these brothers were as Papyrus waved his arms around and loudly boasted about his most recent success with a customer. After a few minutes of basic conversation, you remembered something from one of his emails.

 

“Papyrus, didn’t you say the rest of your family was coming, too?”

 

_ But I thought Sans said that they had no family? _

 

The question seemed to delight Papyrus greatly. “AH, YES! THEY WILL BE ARRIVING SHORTLY. HOWEVER, IT IS UNFORTUNATE THEY DID NOT ARRIVE AS PROMPTLY AS THE GREAT PAPYRUS. NYEH HEH HEH. NOW IT WILL NOT BE A SURPRISE LIKE IT WAS FOR ME!” 

 

A few minutes later Papyrus ran out of Grillby's without a word. You turned to Sans to ask him where he thought his brother had run off to, but you were surprised to see a dark look on his face. His previously glowing orbs were now replaced by the dark pits of his eye sockets. Grabbing the back of his arm lightly, you looked up at him with concern. 

 

“_________, I have to tell you the reason why our friends are all moving to this town. The last place we lived at, the humans all hated us. There was no place for us to go.” Sans eyes began to slowly light up as he looked around Grillby’s at all the laughing and relaxed monsters. “I decided to come here first and check it out, to make sure it was safe. I was surprised to find an entire area filled with monsters, and from what I hear even more are moving to live here. I just wanted to warn you ahead of time, kid. And apologize if...you know….”

 

“They observe me, and don’t trust me at first? Reminds me of a certain skeleton I’m friends with.”

 

“You knew?” Sans asked this question in a lower and more hushed voice, obviously not wanting to be heard by any of the monsters around.

 

_ PAYBACK TIME. _

 

Patting his shoulder and winking, you leaned in close to where you figured his ears would be, and whispered “I notice more about you than you’d think.” You slowly backed away, enjoying watching his face gradually change to a solid shade of light blue. Sans was completely frozen. 

 

“What’s wrong, Sans? Don’t find this situation HUMERUS?” The monsters all around you started to laugh loudly, including Sans. After the audience died down a little bit, he motioned around him, as if he were on stage.

 

“Very funny, kid. Too bad that joke’s BONE-dry.” The giggles started getting louder.

 

_ Is this...a challenge? _

 

Stepping up next to him, you repeated the same gesture as he did before replying.

 

“Sorry we can’t all paTELLA joke as good as you can, Sans.” 

 

“I only meant it to be a BONE-evolent conversation.”

 

At this exchange, every monster in the diner filled the room with uproarious laughter. Even Grillby could be heard chuckling by the bar. You and Sans just looked at each other, you giving him fake looks of disgust, and him smiling so sweetly it made your heart thump.

 

_ That’s it. There’s no more denying it. I’m….completely and utterly in love with this bonehead. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One of my friends won't stop calling Grillby "Gibby" and I'm thoroughly disgusted.


	6. The Place Between Monster and Man

-RING-

 

Looking towards the door you could see a two monsters through the glass, Papyrus leading them inside. You breathed in deeply, bracing yourself for the worst. You had hoped the laughter around you from the joke session you and Sans had would drown out the gesture, but a second later a large, bony hand grabbed hold of your own and squeezed tightly, then disappeared as quickly as it came. You looked at Sans and smiled worriedly, feeling much better after seeing his head slightly nod. You weren’t going into this alone, and you knew it. 

 

“HURRY UP UNDYNE, I HAVE TO SHOW YOU MY NEW HUMAN FRIEND!”

 

With a tall fish woman dragged by his side, Papyrus came bounding right in front of you and Sans. After them followed and extremely odd figure. There was a small yellow dinosaur-lizard monster panting frantically behind them. If you had to guess, you would have to say that the monster was tired from trying to keep up with her two tall and fast friends. Of course, all you could do  _ was  _ guess, since no one was talking. Not a noise could be heard in Grillby’s at all, you realized.

 

“HUMAN! THIS IS MY BEST FRIEND UNDYNE!”

 

“It’s very nice to meet you Undyne”, you replied while holding out your hand towards the new monster and smiling as kindly as you could. Silence rang in your ears as you felt dozens of eyes staring right at you. Undyne stood unmoving in front of you, smiling with wild eyes. Carefully, she moved her hands upwards and….put them straight into the pockets of her jeans.

 

“I know what you are trying to do, damn human. I’ll die before I let you near any of my family. Stop playing the ‘friendly’ card and tell my why you’re really here.”

 

Still holding out your hand, you locked eyes with Undyne. The intensity in your voice surprised even you.

 

“I would never hurt Papyrus, or any other monster. Not even you, Undyne.”

 

Spitting on the floor, the defensive fish woman shot you a look that could kill. Glancing to her side, you realized the monster which had come in with Undyne looked extremely sad and...scared. 

 

“U-U-U-Und-dyne.”

 

“Please, Alphys. You know the types of humans that target Papyrus.” Scrunching up her face, Undyne turned from Alphys back to you. “They are straight shit. Every last one of ‘em.”

 

The old you would have backed down, maybe even cried at the amount of hatred she had for you, or at the fact that no one was saying anything. The pressure itself may have cracked you.

 

_ But I’m not the old me. I’ve stood up against Jeremy. I’ve waged war on my entire college.  _

 

Suddenly you felt a warm burst of air near your shoulder, and turned to see Grillby standing cross-armed beside you. A hard hand pat your back as Sans moved forward and straightened out on your other side. Suddenly, you felt something bubbling up inside, sending shock waves through your mind and soul, filling you to the brim. 

 

_ Grillby and Sans believe we can finally end this. They believe in me… _

 

Your body tingled with determination.

 

“Undyne, Alphys. I want you to be my friends.”

 

Undyne’s slow and harsh laughter echoed through the bar, but was cut short when she caught sight of two small monsters wearing striped sweaters in the seats beside her. Whipping her head around, she groaned in a deep voice. “Don’t you have any respect? I swear all humans are the same! Selfish bastard, look at your surroundings. I’ll be outside!” And in two long strides she was gone. The other monster stayed behind, glancing between you, Grillby, Sans, and Papyrus. A few seconds later conversation picked up around the room, and the bartender returned to his usual place behind the bar.

 

“I-I-I-I’m s-sorry. F-For U-U-ndyne’s beh-h-havior.”

 

“It’s not your fault,” Sans said, scratching his head and sighing. “But we better get her to calm down soon and come inside, or else she’ll freeze out there.”

 

Papyrus, who had been covering his face as if he were hiding, suddenly shot one hand up in the air heroically, and sprinted towards the door. 

 

“I’LL GET UNDYNE, SANS!”

 

“Thanks, Paps”, Sans called back, then began to talk to Alphys again.

 

Turning from the two monsters in front of you, you walked back to your backpack, and gathered your things together. You put on your jacket and slung one strap over your least injured shoulder, wincing at the pain that followed. Trying to walk out of the door without Sans seeing you, you snuck around the side of the diner instead of through the middle. As you started to push open the glass door relief suddenly flooded your sore body as the weight of the backpack was lifted off. 

 

“Do you really think carrying something heavy like this after today’s events is such a good idea, kid?”

 

Behind you were Alphys and Sans, both looking very concerned. The yellow monster’s eyes widened as she realized how injured you were.

 

“O-OH MY GOD. A-A-ARE YOU OK?”

 

Laughing, you grabbed your backpack out of Sans hands, trying to not let any sign of pain show. You didn’t want to worry the poor monster any more than she already was.

 

“I’m fine, thank you. I just tripped earlier.” Swinging your backpack widely over your shoulder to demonstrate how much it didn’t hurt, you smiled so you wouldn’t grit your teeth. “I really want Undyne to be comfortable here, and if that means me leaving then I would be more than happy to. She seems to mean very much to you two and Papyrus. Maybe we can all meet a different time.”

 

You had expected a simple “yes” or “thank you” from the new monster, but instead, she simply stood in silence. Then slowly a small, shaking hand raised slightly higher and higher until it was extended toward you. She looked as if she were going to cry, but her arm maintained its quivering in the air.

 

_ She’s so scared, and yet... _

 

Gently grabbing her shaking hand with your bruised ones, you cupped your hands over hers to stop her from shaking. 

 

“It was very nice to meet you today Alphys. See you soon.”

 

“I-It was nice to meet you t-to.”

 

Reluctantly, you turned away from Alphys and started your journey back to your dorms, waiting a few yards before glancing backwards. Through the window you could tell the monster was in a significantly better mood, her mouth moving furiously as Sans nodded every once in awhile to show he was still listening. After a few seconds he glanced in your direction, and you quickly started walking away, hoping he didn’t notice you staring at him. With every step away from Grillby’s the cold and darkness only emphasized the aching within your body. 

 

_ I’ll have to thank Grillby tomorrow for letting me sleep in the cabinet. And I’ll thank Sans in class--- _

 

Pausing, you looked upward at your breath in the air, remembering Jeremy and everything that had happened that morning. You tried to focus on your thoughts and not your body’s pain as you began walking again.

 

_ If I go to class, I can’t be alone. It’s not safe. I would have to message Sans first. But would I even be able to make it through the day like normal? With my body and all…? _

 

Shaking your head, you felt the wind howling as a sudden gust ripped the freezing snow out of the sky and down towards the earth. The previously beautiful white specks which dotted your surroundings now filled your entire view, making it difficult just to see a meter in front of you. You began walking with your hands outstretched, feeling around for a familiar brick face. Running into the black alleyway dividing the human and monster sides of town, you stood in between the two brick walls which began to shield you from the wind and snow, and tried to catch your breath. The new pain and burning of your body filled your mind, and as the weight of your backpack tipped you backwards, you suddenly felt all alone in this place between monster and man.

 

“Heh...now what did I tell you about carrying this thing by yourself? Need a HAND?”

 

Looking up into the bright orbs of Sans eyes, you felt a bony hand wriggling at your hip from the joke. He was hunched over you, holding you midair and stopping your fall effortlessly. Standing back up and straightening your backpack on your shoulders, you turned towards the exit of the alleyway and said “Thanks for the offer Sans, but I’m fine. Just go back to your friends.” Before you could take more than two steps Sans suddenly materialized in front of you, blocking your path completely.

 

“Why won’t you let me help you?”

 

“I’m a grown woman, Sans, I’m not a kid like you always say. I’m fine carrying a bag on my own.”

 

“How are you feeling? What’s wrong?”

 

“Nothing’s wrong.”

 

As you tried to push in between Sans and the side of the wall, his arm shot out beside him, stopping you once again. His head tilted slowly, staring right at you.

 

“I haven’t known you for very long, ___________. But I can at least tell when you’re lying to me. I...really care about you alot.” Sans looked down as his face turned vibrant blue, before speaking in a gentler voice. “Please, tell me.”

 

It was as if those words unlocked the emotions deep within you. Your throat tightened up as tears blurred your vision and Sans slowly slid the backpack off your shoulders and laid it in the snow. Then, everything you had tried to hide came gushing out.

 

“Sans, it's just that….my entire body hurts and Undyne hates me and even Alphys was afraid of me and I was so scared but I didn’t back down and now I just want to go home but if I do I’ll be reminded of Jeremy and then it’ll just hurt even more and I’m cold and scared and I’m tired of everyone telling me who I am! I’m tired of everyone avoiding me just because of what I believe!”

 

By the end of your rant you were crying into Sans shoulder, hoping it would muffle what you were saying. But Sans heard everything. Rubbing your back, he started leaning so he could look at your face.

 

_ I probably look like an absolute mess right now… _

 

His smile was genuine and beautiful, and as he pulled you into a hug your arms naturally wrapped around him. You both stayed like that for a moment, Sans cracking jokes in your ear until your competitive nature forced you to crack some back. Soon you both were laughing, still holding each other and refusing to let go, until the cold started to chill your skin and finally made you speak up.

 

“Sans...I need to get back to my dorm.”

 

“Ok.”

 

A melting sensation that you remembered engulfed you, peeling away the details of your surroundings into darkness, then reforming the scenery in a series of laced blurs and pixels. You felt Sans hands around your hips, and tried to make out his facial expression through the pixelation of the world. All you could do was observe a string of blue pixels where his face would be. In about a minute of standing like that, the scene returned to normal. 

 

“Hey...this is my room! Sans, can you really teleport anywhere?”

 

Dropping his hands from your sides, he looked at the ground before smiling at you.

 

“Yup. But only for special people.”

 

You decided to add the question of HOW he teleports to the mental list of questions you were preparing for Sans, right next to  _ How does anything on a skeleton monster work?  _ and  _ Why doesn’t Sans ever open his mouth? _

 

Deciding you wanted to add the list to the notes on your phone, you looked around casually for your backpack, until you concluded it was nowhere to be found.

 

“Ummm, Sans? Where’s my backpack.”

 

“Oh. Probably back in the alley. I’ll be back, kid.”

 

In a flash he was gone, and the room was empty again. The silence was calming, but also made you realize something.

 

_ Sans doesn’t have anywhere to stay. _

 

After glancing around your room for any way to make it more hospitable for a guest, you were satisfied to see everything in your room was clean and orderly like always.

 

_ I’m...going to do it. Whenever Sans comes back, I’m going to ask him if he would like to room with me.  _

 

A few minutes later Sans rematerialized with your backpack slung across one shoulder, and three orders of fries in his arms. He winked as he set them down on your bed carefully, before plopping right next to them. After taking a handful, he waved you over to sit down next to him, and before long you and him were munching on fries and talking about pointless things for half an hour. When the last fry was gone Sans stood up and stretched, letting out a ginormous yawn which made the bags under his eyes more apparent. 

 

“Welp, that was nice, but I better g---”

 

Feeling your hand lightly tug on the back of his shirt, Sans tilted his head towards you and asked almost too nonchalantly, “What is it, kid?”

 

“U-um……..”

 

_ OH NO THIS IS HARDER THAN I THOUGHT!  _

 

“....yeah?”

 

“Umm……..YOUR JACKET!” Shooting up, you rushed towards your dresser and grabbed the jacket and the note. “I meant to give this to you today!” Nervously laughing, you handed the jacket to Sans. His eyes narrowed for a second before shrugging and smiling.

“Alright then. Thanks.”

 

Turning around as if he were about to leave again, you felt your guilt crawling on your back. 

 

_ Just because I’m nervous I’m going to let Sans sleep on the floor of an empty wooden diner all alone. What the hell is wrong with me? _

 

“WAIT!”

 

“Um, kid? I’m right here, there’s no need to yell.”

 

Looking straight at the floor, you could feel your face getting hot as you summoned the courage to ask him. “Sans, will you be my roommate? I mean, you don’t have to if you don’t want to...I’ll understand.” After a few seconds of silence, you looked up expecting to see a face of disgust. Instead, Sans face was bright blue, his cool demeanor and standard smile almost completely erased. You couldn’t help but stare. 

 

Awkwardly coughing and looking to the side, Sans nodded his head and said “Sure. Uh. Yeah. Sounds great. Let me go get my stuff.” And in a flash he was gone.

 

Grabbing your pillow and giggling directly into it, you tried to stifle the uncontrollable urge to squeal at the fact that he had agreed to be with you.

 

_ Well. No. He’s not WITH me...he’s just rooming with me. There’s a difference. I’m just a friend to him……….BUT STILL! _

 

Sprawling out on your bed and glancing around your half-empty room, your heart started beating loudly as you waited for Sans to return. It was about ten minutes before he came back, two backpacks on and a sleeping bag and pillow in his arms.

 

“Are your friends….alright now?”

 

“Yeah. Papyrus and Alphys managed to calm down Undyne. All three of them just left to stay at the Inn that just opened near Grillby’s.”

 

Looking down at the sleeping materials in his arms, Sans smirked at you. “Heh. I don’t have much...but at least I won’t be BONE-ly anymore.”

 

Laughing, you threw your pillow at him as he lazily threw his things down near the empty bed. The pillow stopped midair, glowing with blue, and floated back down to its proper place on your bed. Laying his sleeping bag out on top of the empty bed, Sans winked at you and chuckled.

 

“Ugh Sans it’s not fair that you have cool magic like that.”

 

Shocked, he laid down on his sleeping bag facing you. “You’re familiar with monsters and magic?”

 

“I know more than the average person, yes. But not enough as I  _ want _ to know.” You smiled at Sans as you got your clothes out of the dresser to take a shower, casually trying to avoid the depth of the question. “I’m going to take a shower. My skin needs some reFLESHing after today.” Winking, you walked into the bathroom and turned on the water, then giggled at the sound of Sans laughter through the door. 

 

Today was one of the worst days of your entire life….

 

But you wouldn’t change it for the world.


	7. Now and Forever

Darkness was everywhere.

 

You opened your eyes to find yourself surrounded by thick black clouds of smoke, and as you gasped for breath the smog only got thicker, choking you and making your eyes water. Sitting up, you looked down to see yourself chained to two thick metal spokes in the ground. Through your squinted eyes you could see a tall figure approaching, metallic chinks sounding with their every step.

 

“W...Who is it? Why am I h...here?” You could barely talk due to the clouds of smoke and black particles in your lungs. The figure, pausing to listen to what you had to say, began moving again. It retreated into the smog, laughing cheerfully. You shivered as you heard the footsteps approaching behind you, every fighting instinct awakening from within. Your voice steadied as you stood up, and with your head over your shoulder you called to the being with the most hostile voice you could muster.

 

“Whoever you are, I hope you know damn well that I’m not going down without a fight. I won’t let you hurt me or my friends. So unlock these chains before I make you regret it.”

 

For a few seconds your words echoed around in this space, and the being grew silent. 

 

_ I….I can do this…….s...stay strong….. _

 

Suddenly laughter boomed from all directions, vibrating through your entire body and bringing you to your knees. The laughter was so loud all you could do was cup your ears and scream in agony, hoping the hell you were enduring would end. In a flash the air in the room became crystal clear, the shining white walls showing no sign of the smoky atmosphere which had occupied the space merely seconds before.

 

“You have no power.”

 

Tears started streaming down your face, your hands shaking at the voice. It was Jeremy. Turning to look behind you, you felt a sudden rush and the room became dotted with black as you fell to the floor. You could taste the blood in your mouth before the pain hit, and as you watched a string of red drip down your nose to the floor’s clean white surface, you knew he was right. His laugh was that of pure joy as he watched you break down before him from a simple punch. Satisfied, he kicked you once or twice before walking around so you could face him. Gripping your jaw with his nails as he jerked your head forward, he peered down at you with satisfaction.

 

“Did you really think I would let you off so easy?”

 

The look in his eyes froze your entire body, and time stood still as Jeremy cackled and stood back, crossing his arms and shaking his head with disapproval. Without thinking your mouth started moving, spilling out your final cry for help.

 

“Sans...,” you whispered, your voice getting louder each time his name escaped you. “Sans………..Sans. Sans! SANS!!!!!!!!”

 

But nobody came.

 

“Hahaha! It’s so cute that you still think he can save you. Actually, I was talking to him earlier, and he asked me to do something for him.”

 

Reaching into his pocket very slowly, he took out a knife covered in flecks of white. Looking directly into your eyes, he tilted his head sideways and smiled apologetically. “Whoops, sorry. Wrong pocket.” Throwing the knife to the floor, it made the same clicking noise you had heard before when Jeremy was still hidden by the smoke. 

 

You looked up at him, feeling defeated in every way. Jeremy reached into his other pocket, then slowly moved his fist directly over your head. You had expected to be hit again, but you never could have anticipated what happened next. 

 

Dust.

 

A thin wave of white dust trickled down onto your entire body, and as you locked eyes with Jeremy, realization began to slowly creep in. 

 

“He asked me to scatter his dust on the one he loved. I told you I keep my promises.”

 

Your world began to shake and twirl as you lost all consciousness and the will to live.

 

________________________________________________________________________

  
  


“....d……...kid………...KID”

 

Your eyes snapped open at the voice, and through the tears in your eyes you could make out the layout of your dorm room. Hard hands were on your side, shaking you awake. Sans, sitting on the end of your bed and looking very concerned, sighed into the darkness. You sat up to face him, your teeth chattering and your entire body shaking violently. He waited a moment before speaking.

 

“I heard you crying...and then you...um….started calling out to me and…….are you ok?”

 

Without thinking you grabbed onto Sans and squeezed tightly, as if he would disappear if you let go. The feeling of his sharp body and the hands which wrapped around you combined and reduced you to sputtering and sobbing. 

 

“....Sans……….you died. Jeremy had your…..dust…...and I couldn’t save you…...there was nothing I could do and---”

 

Running his fingers through your hair softly, Sans leaned in and hugged you tighter.

 

“It’s ok. It’s alright. I’m here and alive and everything is going to be just fine. It was just a dream, ___________.” You both stayed in that position for a good hour, you whimpering into Sans, and him cradling you in his arms while whispering encouraging words into your ear, until you finally calmed down. Finally drawing back, you waited for your eyes to adjust and then looked at his shirt. As you had expected, there was a giant wet spot where you had been crying.

 

“......thanks, Sans. And sorry about…...that.”

 

Looking down, he let out a small laugh before standing up off your bed to take his shirt off. He was looking directly at you as he did it, and as your face began to heat up you decided to study a shadow on the wall in the opposite direction. 

 

_ Does he know that I like him?  _

 

Sans laughter suddenly bursted out from beside you, nearly causing you to fall off of your bed.

 

He’s just screwing around. Of course…...but I can’t help but find that part of him attractive too. His smile…….the way he blushes…………..even his bones…….. 


 

Deciding to stop your perverted thoughts in their tracks, you tried to change the subject while still facing the wall. 

 

“SO um Sans. What time is it?”

 

“5:58.”

 

“Oh yikes….I’m sorry for waking you up….”

 

“Don’t worry about it, kid. I couldn’t really sleep tonight anyways.”

 

“Why not?”

 

“........”

 

“Sans?”

 

“........”

 

Slightly turning your head to take a peek, you noticed that Sans was no longer standing up. You quickly scanned the room, trying to swallow the fear that began creeping back to you. 

 

_ What if he noticed what I was thinking, and teleported away. What if he got tired of me... _

 

Your panicked thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a loud snore. Walking over to Sans bed, you pushed the sleeping bag down to reveal a rather adorably sleeping skeleton monster. You felt ashamed that you’d doubted him for even a moment. Gently sitting down on the side of the bed, you peered slightly over him, taking in every feature and causing your heart to beat rapidly. You were more attracted to him than you’d ever been to anyone else, and being this close to him in the darkness certainly wasn’t helping you to restrain yourself.

 

_ He has a smile on his face even now...I wonder-- _

 

Shaking your head violently, you leaned forward and stood up. No matter how much you liked someone, you knew it was wrong to do anything without their consent. You sighed and scratched your head, fighting the urge to stay near Sans even a little longer.

 

_ Plus...he probably just sees me as a friend. _

 

Finally gathering yourself, you took one step forward, but stopped midway when a bony hand reached out and grabbed your arm. Pulling you backwards, you landed right on top of Sans. The darkness around you became illuminated with blue, and as you locked eyes with your crush you couldn’t help but laugh nervously. You had expected Sans to do the same, or shift his eyes around awkwardly like normal...but he didn’t. Instead, he was smiling at you softly, and as you sat up you felt his hands slowly creep onto your lower back.

 

“S...sorry I was um, staring...you were probably awake then….”

 

“Yeah.”

 

Embarrassment flooded your face as you looked down, realizing the position you two were in. You could feel his chest bones pressing into you. It was uncomfortable, but not unbearable, and Sans looked fine. You still thought it was best to get off of him just in case.

 

“Here let me get up, Sans. I’m probably crushing you…”

 

Moving his hands upwards and pushing you into him in a hug, he let out a deep chuckle and sighed contently. 

 

“Heh. Nah.”

 

For a few minutes you both stayed like this, until you finally summoned enough courage to ask him the question which had been burning in your mind all day.

 

“Sans...can I ask you a question?”

 

“Go a-BED.”

 

“Do you….um…...well……...do you……..l…..like...me?”

 

“......................”

 

In the silence both of Sans hands dropped off of you.

 

_ OH NO IM SO STUPID NOW HE’S MAD AT ME AND----- _

 

Grabbing your face in his hands, Sans leaned in ever so slightly until your lips touched his smile. It was a strange kiss, and didn’t have very much sexual arousal to it, but somehow it still managed to make your knees weak. As he drew back to look at you, his face bursted with bright blue and you could see the lights of his eyes shifting around the room.

 

“Yeah, kid.... I do. Heh heh…...heh….”

 

His small and shy words made you so happy you wrapped both arms around his neck and squeezed tightly, trying not to squeal and make yourself sound like an idiot. Before Sans could say anything, you leaned in from your position over him and gave the best kiss you could directly on his mouth, causing him to turn two shades lighter.

 

“I like you, too.”

 

Too excited to stay still any longer, you shot up from the bed and ran over to your own. You rocked back and forth on your bed and felt yourself reddening as Sans began to glow from across the room. 

 

“This won’t be too bad...heh. Dating your roomie I mean.”

 

“Y...yeah hahah.”

 

Both of you were too embarrassed to do much talking, and for a second you’d believed he had fallen asleep for real in the silence. That was, until you saw two chairs engulfed in blue floating towards the giant glass window of your room.

 

Lazily rolling out of bed, Sans gestured to the chairs now placed on the ground and winked.

 

“I don’t know about you, kid, but I’ve heard sunrise is pretty romantic. Let’s watch it together.” Looking outside, Sans scratched his skull nervously. “Well, that is...if you’re still not tired...or anything…..heh.”

 

Delighted, you walked quickly over to the seat and sat down. Patting the empty one next to you and looking up at him expectantly, you smirked and said “Come on lazybones, the sunrise isn’t going to watch itself.” This made Sans smile and blush a little, and plopping into the empty seat, he looked at you nervously before grabbing your hand in his own. You both sat in the darkness in silent happiness, neither of you saying a word. You could hear birds chirping in the distance, and as time progressed the dark sky gradually lightened with streams of pale pinks and yellows, the clouds framing the sun and brightening at its touch. 

 

_ I...don’t think I have the courage to go to classes today. I have Sans now, but if I run into Jeremy… _

 

Shivering at the thought, Sans slowly let go of your hand and wrapped his entire arm around your shoulders, pulling you close.

“Sans...well, about classes today…”

 

“Yeah I’m feeling extra lazy this morning, so I don’t think I’m gonna go.” Winking at you, he stood up, and started walking to his bag to take out his phone. “I’m gonna email in, do you mind?”

 

“Go ahead. And I don’t think I’m going to either.”

 

_ I know he’s just doing this for me….I really hope he’s not annoyed. _

 

The sound of Sans hard, bony fingers typing against his phone sounded strange to you, but you couldn’t help but love it. You let out a small laugh as you walked over to him to read the email.

 

***Dr. Bennet, it’s Sans. Me and _________ can’t make it today, but I’ll have her all caught up by tomorrow. Send anything else you want her to know. See ya.**

 

_ Wow, Sans must be really close to Dr. B. He just nonchalantly can email him about missing school and catching me up…catching ME up? _

 

Sans must have noticed your face at the email, because he quickly sent it and locked the phone. Putting his arms straight out on both sides and flopping onto his bed dramatically, Sans heaved out a sleepy sigh. You were aware that he was smart, but your competitive nature just wouldn’t let you accept the fact that he knew more than you. Remembering the time you’d quizzed him in class, you suddenly stood up full of energy. Snatching your advanced calculus book out of your backpack and thrusting it into his face, Sans looked up at you extremely confused. 

 

“Uh...kid?”

 

“If you really think you can teach me, then prove it Mr. Smartypants.”

 

“Heh, kid. I really don’t think you want to do this.”

 

“I do! That first time had to be a fluke!”

 

Smiling wide and sitting up, the lights of his eyes grew large as he started smirking. “Alright then, how about we make this interesting…If I can’t prove to you that I’m smarter, I’ll do whatever you want me to do.”

 

“DEAL!”

 

_ Hahah I’ve got this in the bag. _

 

Holding up his finger to his mouth, he winked at you before speaking. “...buf if I win, you have to do whatever I want you to do.”

 

Annoyed at the thought of you losing, you shoved the book back into his face again. “Yeah yeah whatever. I’m going to quiz you, so you better read it quick.”

 

“No need.”

 

“Are you really sure now is the time to be all cocky?” A childish grin formed across your face, nearly making Sans chuckle to death. After a few seconds he looked back at you still smiling, but the lights of his eyes were intensely focused. 

 

“I’m not cocky...it’s just that you’re walking into my playing field now, kid. Hit me with your worst.”

 

__________________________________________________________________________

 

Patting you on the back, you shot Sans a death glare before leaning back into your pouting position. Not only had he gotten every question right, but he even knew the  _ page numbers  _ each question was on. You and he both knew he was the smarter one, and he seemed to think it was one of the most amusing things in the world.

 

“Heheh…..want….heh…..to try your 56th question……?” His uncontrollable chuckling cracked your fake anger, and as you started laughing your guts out he wrapped his arm around you happily. Breathing heavily after the laughing fit, Sans hunched over to whisper in your ear. “I guess...you have to do  _ anything _ I want now, huh?”

 

“OH MY GOD SANS YOU’RE SUCH A PERVERT.” Playfully pushing him away, he tackled you and started tickling your sides until you surrendered. After sitting back up and regaining your composure, you couldn’t help but smile and think that this was the happiest moment of your life. Suddenly silence filled the room as sans bony hand grabbed yours softly, and brought it close to where his heart would be.

 

“Sans?”

 

“..............”

 

“Um….Sans?”

 

“You said you’d do anything I wanted, right?”

 

“Yes…?”

 

Breathing in deeply, as if he were afraid to ask, he smiled sadly and spoke in an almost silent voice. “Promise… that you’ll stay with me.” His hand started shaking as the lights of his eyes grew dim, and at that moment you knew you loved him. You loved him in his happiness and his brokenness. And no matter the consequences, as long as you could stay just one more day with him…

 

_ That’s all I need. _

 

Reaching both hands upward to his skull, you pulled him close to your chest. At first he just sat in silence, breathing into your shirt. But then, slowly, two hard arms wrapped around you and gripped tightly, still slightly shaking.

 

“I promise, Sans.”

 

_ Now and forever. _

 


	8. Bowling for a Broken Heart

-BAM- -BAM-

 

“Damn it, Alphys!”

 

“Undyne, please calm down…”

 

After smashing her hands against the wall a couple more times, the furious fish woman threw herself face down onto the bed, and mumbled angrily into a pillow. Alphys slowly reached out to pet her girlfriend’s hair, taking out the ponytail and combing it with her fingers. This always seemed to calm her down.

 

“Do I REALLY have to do this? Why can’t I just stay here while you guys--”

 

Undyne stopped her complaining when Alphys started braiding her hair. Sitting up and moving to the edge of the bed so her girlfriend could reach, she started sighing and clicking her sharp teeth together.

 

“Undyne, I know this is hard for you. But p-please consider our side...Mettaton really wants to meet the friend and colleague Papyrus always talks so highly about. And I already asked Sans...he said him and the...h-h-human are a package deal.”

 

“WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH HIM!? He’s choosing some random person over us.”

 

Getting up off the bed, Alphys turned and sat in front of her girlfriend, and shyly grabbed both of Undyne’s hands in her own.

 

“You and I both know that isn’t true. Today is going to be a very important day, so Undyne...p-p-please?”

 

Seeing Alphys in such a worried mood instantly cleared her mind of any hesitation. Grabbing the monster and pulling her into a tight hug, Undyne cackled loudly. “Of course! We are all going to be BESTIES!”

 

Knocks on the wall sounded as Papyrus’ concerned voice rang through the entire Inn. “UNDYNE! ALPHYS! ARE YOU TWO OKAY? I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, CAME TO LET YOU KNOW METTATON CALLED AND SAID HE IS ALMOST HERE. ARE YOU TWO ALRIGHT IN THERE? I HEARD LOUD BANGING…”

 

Quickly nudging Undyne in the stomach to keep her from making any perverted noises, Alphys called back “Yes, we are just f-fine Papyrus! We will meet you downstairs.”

 

________________________________________________________________________

 

Taming your hair in the mirror, you could hear Sans humming in the shower the same tune he had been humming when you two first met on that cold, snowy night. By the time the water clicked off you had successfully managed to form your hair into the perfect volume. You should have felt tired from the nightmares and trauma you had experienced that night, but you didn’t. The main thing you felt was happiness from the realization that your crush and roommate was now your boyfriend. Well, that and the aching bruises all over your body from Jeremy.

 

“Wow...you’re so beautiful……..” The voice came from behind you and careful, bony fingers brushed your hair to the side as you felt Sans kiss your neck gently.

 

“Sans...I--”

 

Ruffling your hair quickly, the skeleton monster hopped back and began chuckling loudly. You looked into the mirror in horror as layers of frizz fluffed out in all directions.

 

“IM GOING TO KILL YOU” you yelled and laughed (only half kidding) as you reached for Sans shirt. In a flash he was gone and your clenched hand was empty. You looked around but you couldn’t find him.

 

“Heh heh….looking for someone?”

 

Shooting your head up in disbelief you saw Sans smiling down at you a couple of inches above your head, his body glowing with blue. Realizing that it was impossible to get him back you crossed your arms in a fake pout.

 

“No fair! You messed up my hair and I can’t even get revenge.”

 

“Aw c’mon kid, I thought you liked my FUN-tastic side.”

 

“I changed my mind. I want a refund”, you sighed, rolling your eyes dramatically.

 

Setting himself back on the ground, Sans rested his hands on your hips and pulled you into him, careful to not touch any of the sensitive or bruised parts on your body. “Heh. Too bad.”

 

_ I love him. _

 

Before either of you could say another word Sans phone began to ring loudly from the dresser. Turning back to fix your hair again you couldn’t help but smile at Sans happy voice. It was so painfully obvious how much the skeleton brothers cared for each other.

 

“Oh hey bro. Was the meeting today? I guess I kinda forgot.”

 

A loud “NYARGHHHHH” exploded from the phone, so you could hear it from across the room. After a few minutes of making your final adjustments, you turned from the mirror satisfied with your appearance. 

 

_ Today, we are going to skip class and go meet up with all of Sans friends from the Underground. Apparently Papyrus’ boyfriend is coming into town today, too. And sure, Undyne and Alphys saw me at my worst...but today is going to be different, I know it! _

 

Checking back again to make sure your hair properly hid the bruises and nail marks on your neck, you felt Sans walk up next to you, phone in hand. Loud yells could be heard from the other side of the call.

 

“It’s for you.”

 

“Hello? Papyrus?”

 

“HUMAN. YOU HAVE GUESSED CORRECTLY! I, PAPYRUS, HAVE CALLED TO LET YOU KNOW HOW GREAT IT WILL BE TO SEE YOU AGAIN. YOU ARE NOT MISTAKEN IN BELIEVING THAT EVERYONE IS DEEPLY SORRY FOR YESTERDAY. ARE THERE ANY HARSH FEELINGS?”

 

“Oh no, no it’s fine. I understand, and I’m happy for you all being so considerate.”

 

“NYEH HEH HEH. IT IS TRUE. MY MILLIONS OF FRIENDS CONSTANTLY SHOWER ME WITH ADORATION FOR BEING THE MOST CONSIDERATE-EST! WELL THEN, WE WILL ALL BE WAITING FOR YOU AND SANS OUTSIDE OF GRILLBY’S IN HALF AN HOUR! SEE YOU SOON, HUMAN!”

 

And with that, Papyrus hung up. Sans was snickering to your side, finding the distance you held the phone from your ear absolutely hilarious. Grabbing both of his bony hands tightly to stop him from laughing, you leaned in close enough to make a slight tint of blue creep on his face.

 

“Well, let's go before you bust a gut…” Dropping his hands and crossing your arms, you up-downed him before smirking.

 

Sans quickly grabbed his jacket off of the bed and whipped it on, shrugging at you and walking backwards. “Welp, have fun walking to--”

 

“Wait, wait, wait haha.” Running up to hug him you held him tight not knowing if he was kidding about leaving or not. Sans held you back, wrapping his arms just as tightly around you. “Ok. Here we go.”

 

________________________________________________________________________

 

“I DON’T UNDERSTAND, UNDYNE. METTATON SAID HE WAS NEARLY HERE!”

 

“HAH that drama queen is always late.”

 

Tapping her foot impatiently, Undyne spat on the snow and crossed her arms to hide her shivering.

 

“Undyne...maybe we should r-really just wait inside…”

 

“Papyrus said we would be waiting outside, and so that's exactly what I’m gonna do! But where are Sans and the human!? I bet they ditched.”

 

“UNDYNE! HOW COULD YOU SAY THAT!?!? SANS AND THE HUMAN WERE QUITE EXCITED FOR TODAY FROM WHAT I HEAR!!”

 

“Tch. How do you know the human wasn’t lying. They’re all snakes…”

 

“I-I’m sure they’re close”, Alphys replied, taking off her scarf and wrapping it around Undyne’s neck. The strong fish woman had refused to wear winter clothes, so while Alphys was nearly too warm under her several thick layers, Undyne could barely manage to maintain her cool leaning posture against the lamppost. 

 

Sans had teleported you both to the alleyway, but you only began walking after your vision had fully cleared from its pixilated side effects. As you both turned the corner suddenly both you and Sans were swept up into the arms of Papyrus, who was squealing with glee.

 

“OH SANS, HUMAN! HOW GREAT IT IS TO SEE YOU AGAIN!”

 

“Bro, we just saw each other yesterday.”

 

Placing you both down, Papyrus looked back at Undyne and Alphys excitedly. You waved and smiled at Alphys as she shyly waved back. Undyne for a split second scowled, but snapped her face into an awkward grin as she began walking towards you. 

 

“Speaking of yesterday, sorry about that whole situation BUDDY,” she said loudly next to you as she wrapped her arm around you in an attempt to be friendly. While it seemed convincing enough to Papyrus, Alphys looked at you worriedly while Sans face turned simply to a plastered and unreadable smile. 

 

“No hard feelings?” 

 

“No hard feelings.”

 

Undyne dropped her arm from your shoulder and walked back to her leaning stance. For a second everyone stood in silence, each person and monster lost in their own thoughts, until a voiced boomed from across the street. “Hello my DARLINGS~!”

 

Papyrus’ face instantly brightened even more at the voice, and before you could blink he had managed to sprint into the open arms of a robot you had never seen before.

 

“OH, METTATON! IT HAS BEEN THE LONGEST OF MONTHS WITHOUT YOU IN MY ARMS!” As Papyrus lifted up the robot into the air in his embrace you were the only one to notice Sans let out a small and deep groan.

 

“Papy, dear…”, Mettaton stroke a dramatic pose as Papyrus set him down. “Oh, how DREADFUL it was to leave you for my tour! I missed you so much.~” Turning to face the rest of you, the robot grabbed Papyrus’ hand and strolled over to your small group. “Alphys! You look absolutely adorable in your winter clothes. And Undyne! You look as strong as ever.”

 

Mettaton’s eyes temporarily narrowed as he turned to Sans. “Oh. Hi, Sans.”

 

“Yo,” Sans replied, the lights of his eyes clearly glaring at the their interlocked hands.

 

_ He’s such a softie when it comes to his little brother. _

 

Without meaning to you started giggling, drawing attention from everyone in the group. Dropping Papyrus’ hand and placing his hand on his chin, Mettaton walked around you in circles as if soaking up every detail about you. Finally stopping, he turned in front of you and leaned in close.

 

“My, my. Aren’t you a cute new face.”

 

Excitedly, Papyrus began jumping up and down and swinging his arms wildly. “THIS IS THE HUMAN I WAS TELLING YOU ABOUT!! FROM MY WORK!”

 

“I really do have to thank you, darling”, Mettaton said, grabbing your hands flashily in his own. “Your friendship has made Papy smile more times than I can count. I feel so much better leaving him knowing that loving humans like you are there whenever he needs to talk.”

 

Blushing at how close and sincere Mettaton was, you looked sideways towards Sans before replying. “Oh, don’t mention it...Papyrus is a great friend!”

 

“And boyfriend”, Mettaton replied, dropping your hands and wrapping his arms around Papyrus, who quickly started blushing bright orange.

 

“Are we done with all this sap now. I don’t know about you guys but I’m freezing my ass off right now.”

 

“UNDYNE IS RIGHT! LET US CONTINUE FORWARD TO THE ALLEY OF BOWLING!”

 

“It’s ‘bowling alley’ darling.~”

 

“YES, THAT!”

 

The two couples began to walk forward, leaving you and Sans trailing a few feet behind. Undyne and Alphys were holding hands and blushing, barely able to look at each other, while Mettatton and Papyrus were interlocking arms and holding each other close, speaking loudly about anything and everything (most likely trying to catch up on lost time.)

 

And then there was you and Sans. You both were walking next to each other, but neither of you were even close to touching. The distance was about a foot wide, but felt much larger every step you took.

 

_ Why…….is he being so cold….? Why isn’t he saying anything? _

 

Shifting nervously in the snow, you tried to strike up a conversation.

 

“Mettaton seems nice!”

 

“Yeah.”

 

_ Ok...progress. _

 

“I didn’t expect Papyrus’ boyfriend to be nearly outgoing as himself. Whenever he emails me descriptions of him, he always paints him as shy and fragile.”

 

“Yeah.”

 

Glancing at Sans, you realized his eye sockets were still empty, and he was looking at the floor. There was no way he was even listening to a word you were saying. This made you change tactics.

 

“Wow...it’s so cold out here! Haha. I’m shivering like it’s SNOW-body’s business.”

 

“Yeah.”

 

Moving in front of Sans to stop him in his tracks, you looked right into his eye sockets and refused to move. Sweat started piling around the side of his skull, his fake smile growing even more strained.

 

“Kid? They’re going to leave us behind.”

 

“What’s wrong, Sans?”

 

“Nothing”, he stated plainly before walking around you.

 

His blatant lie stung you hard, even more so the fact that he refused to trust you with whatever was going on. Originally you had thought he was in a bad mood from simple brotherly overprotectiveness, but now you were sure it was something else. Trailing behind him, you both eventually caught up to the group that was impatiently waiting for you outside of the bowling alley.

 

As you all walked in you surveyed the area and realized you were the only human in the entire building.

 

_ Well, this IS the monster side of town after all. _

 

Several friendly faces smiled towards you and Sans, clearly recognizing you both as the comedians from Grillby’s. As you and the rest of your group sat down to enter your names for the electronic scoreboard, a group of the monster girls came by giggling. 

 

“Are you two, like, dating”, one asked Sans while pointing towards you. 

 

Embarrassed you held your face and looked down towards the floor, holding your breath at the fact that everyone was going to find out. It made you a little nervous, but overall you tried to keep yourself from squirming with joy. Sans seemed calm and collected, and waited a few seconds before replying to the girl with empty eyes and a strained smile.

 

“No.”


	9. Bathroom Alliance

For a second you could feel every fiber of your being freeze, unable to do anything except hover as that single word echoed again and again in your mind. 

 

“No.” 

 

Sensing the suddenly tense atmosphere, the young monsters giggled and started chatting stiffly as they slowly walked away. Undyne and Alphys both exchanged glances as they looked between you and Sans, unsure of what to say. Meanwhile, Mettaton playfully interlocked his hands with Papyrus, neither of them leaving their own separate world to sense the conflict arising.

 

“Well, let’s u-um all finish so we can s-s-start the game. O-ok?”

 

Without thinking, your hand reached for the “Cancel” button next to your name, and you erased yourself from the scoreboard. Once you’d realized what you’d done, you glanced around only to be relieved at the fact that no one could have possibly noticed your small gesture.

 

_ Well, except Sans, since he’s sitting next to me. _

 

But it was clear he wasn’t going to be noticing anything about you for a while. From the way he was slightly leaning away from you to the fact that he hadn’t even bothered to look at you once during this entire trip made you realize once again how much that simple word of rejection had stung. Trying to fight back your tears you quickly grabbed your phone in your hand and stood up. 

 

“Bathroom”, was all you could say to Alphys’ questioning and worried stare. And then you were gone.

 

When you entered the large and generally empty space it made you remember something from one of your readings about monsterkind. Something about them not having to use the restroom when they ate their food, since it converted straight to energy.

 

_ Which means there will be next to no monsters in here with me. _

 

Plopping into a small cushioned chair by the sinks, you took out your phone, hoping you could vent your frustrations.

 

_ To WHO, though? Papyrus is here with me, and Grillby is at work. Let’s see, let’s see….. _

 

You must have searched your contact list at least three times before you realized the only contacts you had in your phone were your online coworkers (most of which you barely knew their names), Grillby, Papyrus, and….Sans. Tears began to well up in your eyes at the name, your heartbeat quickening as you cupped both hands over your mouth to keep yourself from making any noise, and then broke down silently. Your arms began to shake as tears fell onto your clothes and your phone, and the silence which had welcomed you seconds ago began so swallow what little self confidence you had left.

 

“U-u-u-m”, whispered a voice you recognized. Startled, you shot up, accidentally knocking your phone off of your lap and onto the cold floor. After placing it on the seat you looked up to see Alphys and Undyne standing by the door, respectfully closing it behind them so no one could see you from the outside. Undyne was leaning against it with a scowl on her face as if you being there were a burden to her entire existence, and Alphys was nervously looking at you as if she had something to say, but just couldn’t. 

 

“Hahaha...sorry, guys. That was rude of me. Let me get cleaned up and I’ll be right with you all.” Walking into a stall you began cleaning your face from the tears and blowing your running nose. You could hear them whispering between themselves, but as soon as you walked out they snapped back and watched you again in silence. As you washed your hands you could feel yourself growing a wide smile, the happy girl in your reflection only further saddening your weakened heart. As you turned back to them you couldn’t help but put on your best act.

 

“Seriously, I’m fine! I just thought of this sad bowling movie I watched the other day, and that’s why you guys saw me like that. I’m really stupid for making you worried. Come on, let’s--”

 

“U-u-um”, Alphys said again, shakily grabbing your arm. “U-um. We know….t-that something is g-g-going on. A-are you alright?”

 

With the best smile you could manage, you turned to Alphys. “Yeah! Really, I’m fine.”

Alphys looked relieved for only a brief moment, but then faced Undyne as if remembering their entire reason for coming. 

 

“Then why’d you do it?” Undyne asked, crossing her arms and spitting out the words.

 

“Do...what?”

 

“DON’T PLAY DUMB! YOU DELETED YOURSELF OFF THE LIST AND JUST WALKED AWAY! THAT SURE AS HELL DOESN’T SOUND OK TO ME!”

 

As Alphys tried to calm Undyne down, you couldn’t help but freeze up.

 

_ Who would have noticed? Undyne and Alphys couldn’t even see my hand from that angle. And Papyrus and Mettaton were busy...um…… _

 

“It was Sans that let us know, by the way”, Undyne muttered, much more collected now that Alphys was rubbing her arm. “Alphys and him were the only two that noticed whenever you left for your little ‘bathroom’ trip. We were a few whole rounds in AND I WAS TOTALLY PUMMELLING EVERYONE when Sans said something about wanting to drop out of the game like you did. That's when we all checked and MAN, you are one little sneak. We killed that game and are planning on starting another one after you’re done with this….PROBLEM.”

 

“Undyne!” Releasing her girlfriend’s arm and turning to face you, you could tell Alphys was beginning to get slightly more comfortable with you. “W-we just want to know what’s wrong. Since we are f-f……..f-f-friends”, she whispered, grabbing your hand in her own. 

 

Realizing how difficult this small gesture must have been, you felt yourself fighting back tears once again as you unintentionally lunged at Alphys and wrapped your arms around her in a giant hug. Her shaking hands gently reached up and started patting your back. This comforting act went on for about a minute in silence, none of you saying anything.

 

“Ok, ok, ok. Hugfest over. Now get offa my girlfriend”, you heard Undyne groan as you felt two large hands pull you both apart.

 

“I’m sorry, Undyne. You too, Alphys. I just...kinda needed that, you know? Thanks.”

 

“Y-y-you’re welcome.”

 

“So……”, you said looking down, fidgeting as you tried to control the waves of emotion you were feeling. “I guess I owe you guys an explanation, huh?”

 

“Damn straight, human.”

 

Breathing in sharply, you held your breath as you locked eyes with both of them, unsure of the consequences your words would have.

 

“I don’t know how much he tells you, but me and Sans…..well we go to the same university.”

 

“O-ok.”

 

“And…...he’s rooming with me now……”

 

“Spit it out, we don’t got all day!”

 

“And…..and…..we are….dating.”

 

“HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!” Undyne, howling with laughter, started beating the wall furiously as Alphys stared at you in disbelief.

 

“I-i-i-is it t-true?”

 

“Yes, Alphys. I promise.”

 

“HAHAHAHAHA LIKE HELL IT IS, ALPHYS! This is SANS we’re talking about, here! The same damn monster who swore to Mettaton that all humanity was useless trash! I’m sorry kid, but HAHAHAHAHAHA EVEN IF YOU FELL OFFA BRIDGE RIGHT NOW I BET OLD SANSY WOULDNT EVEN BLINK A SOCKET! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!”

 

Slowly lifting up your hair and turning around, Undyne’s laughter died off as soon as she caught sight of the deep nail marks and bruises surrounding your throat.

 

“W-w-what h-hap-pened? W-when I asked S-S-Sans he said it wasn’t his p-place to tell the t-t-truth…” You felt bad for frightening Alphys again, but you decided that if you were going to trust them, you would have to tell them everything.

 

“A man at my campus tried to kill me. No one would have probably noticed, too. They all hate me.” Dropping you hair back down, you looked directly at Undyne. “Except Sans. He saved me when he didn’t even have to. When we barely even knew each other…”

 

Her harsh eyes faltering, she looked over your body as if trying to comprehend what she was hearing. “STILL. We don’t even know you, so why should we believe you over Sans.”

 

“U-U-Undyne...Sans DID say he d-didn’t want to come unless the h-human was welcome.” Turning to you, Alphys swallowed before stating very boldly. “I believe her.”

 

“Ugh, but Alphys!”

 

“L-look at her! Does s-s-she have a reason to lie to us?”

 

After a moment of silence as Undyne paced around the empty expanse of the bathroom, you heard her click her tongue before you felt a solid slap on your bruised back. 

 

“Alright, I get it. Welcome to the crew, human.”

 

“Undyne!” Alphys, blushing and smiling proudly at her girlfriend, exclaimed.

 

“Yeah yeah, I’m the best. Let’s save our love time for the bedroom tonight though babe, ‘cause there’s still somethin I don’t get.”

 

“What is it”, you asked.

 

“Why didn’t you say anything when Sans gave you the dump earlier?”

 

Looking down at the ground, you could feel hot tears cloud your eyes as you started shaking. “What could I have said? He made it clear he doesn’t want anything to do with me today. At least not right now. I can’t stop thinking about the reasons why. I know it’s pathetic, but when I think about him saying he doesn’t want other monsters to know about us…..because I’m a human….I just……”

 

Staring at the ground, you couldn’t bring yourself to meet their eyes. Your mouth just kept shooting off on its own.

 

“I just……..even if it is the case, I still like him. I still want to be with him. I can’t even blame him for thinking that……….”

 

Undyne and Alphys were still voiceless, listening to you as you broke down once again.

 

“I mean LOOK AT US. LOOK AT US HUMANS. WE IGNORE AND HARASS AND DUST YOU MONSTERS. SOME OF US JUST FOR FUN. If I were you, I’d hate humans, too. I know you don’t like me Undyne, and I know you are pushing yourself to be my friend Alphys…………...you don’t have to. If Sans thinks it’s best for me to lay low……..he’s probably right. I’m probably……...just causing trouble for you all.”

 

As soon as you heard sniffling you snapped out of your depressed mode and grabbed a handful of tissues from the counter. Holding them out towards the couple in front of you while still looking down, you let out a sad sigh. “Sorry for upsetting you…”

 

_ Poor Alphys. She’s probably shaking even more now. I hope Undyne won’t be too mad that I made her girlfriend cry. _

 

“......THESE AREN’T TEARS, STUPID. IT'S JUST THAT YOUR DAMN HUMAN STENCH IS MAKING MY EYES WATER”, Undyne said in an overly-aggressive voice as she snatched the tissues from your hand. 

 

_ COME AGAIN!?!?! _

 

As Undyne sniffled into the tissue, Alphys rubbed her head gently. “I am just moved by your strength, human. If I had to worry about crap like that with Alphys...I think I’d just…….” Throwing the used tissue into the trash, Undyne grabbed your shoulders tightly and began shaking you back and forth. “GRRRRRRR THIS WHOLE SITUATION PISSES ME OFF!!!!!” 

 

“U-U-Undyne, please let go of the human. They m-may have more i-i-injuries!”

 

After a few more shakes Undyne released your aching shoulders, and turned to Alphys. While they began whispering fiercely you walked to the mirror again and started fixing yourself so no one could tell you were crying. A few splashes of water did the trick, and before long you were back to normal. As you finished wiping your eyes you glanced in the reflection behind you, surprised to see two monsters grinning mischievously at you.

 

“You done fixing your face and stuff?”

 

“Um…...yes?”

 

“T-t-then if you think you will be c-comfortable with going back…….”

 

“Yes, I think I should be fine now…” you said as you remembered to grab your phone.

 

As their smiles widened they each grabbed one of your arms and began pulling you through the bathroom door and back out into the bowling alley. Looking over her shoulder Undyne whispered a little too loudly “Undyne and Alphys problem solving duo mission number one is a go!!”

 

_ I’ve got a bad feeling about this…. _


	10. Jackie Chan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gibby lives again

When you returned to your seats you soon began to realize the meaning of Undyne’s words. Sliding into your seat and placing your phone into your bag, you looked backwards toward the snack bar to see Mettaton and Papyrus feeding french fries to each other, while Sans lazily gulped a soda alone at the table behind them. 

 

_ Aw he looks so lone---WAIT NO YOU ARE TOO MAD AT HIM TO NOTICE. _

 

“Don’t worry about it, ___________. Me and Alphys got you covered.”

 

“Wha-” Before you could finish, you felt strong arms pushing you up out of your seat. Undyne and Alphys wore mischievous faces, clearly intending to put their plan to good use.

 

“W-would you mind getting another b-bowling ball from the front?” Alphys asked the question to you quite loudly, and you noticed Sans head perk up just a bit. “T-This one is a bit too heavy.”

 

“All right.” You weren’t sure what exactly they were up to, but you were positive it was drawing your boyfriend’s attention.

 

_ Is boyfriend even the right word? _

 

The bowling ball was surprisingly light when you picked it up, and as you walked to the front of the room you could feel yourself getting stared at. When you put it back and started looking for a lighter replacement, you soon realized that every ball available was much, much heavier. Walking up to the bowling service counter, you nearly missed the monster that was hunched over with his back turned.

 

“Excuse me?” The monster jumped at your voice, then whirled around and proceeded to straighten while leaning forward and winking at you. 

 

“And what can I do today for such a beautiful rose?” He wiggled his eyebrows while saying this, and you tried to get a glimpse of his nametag hidden behind his suddenly flexed arms.

 

“I am looking for a bowling ball lighter than this one…..Aaron, is it?”

 

He looked absolutely delighted that you had said his name, and quickly motioned for you to follow him back to where you had been searching. And that’s...when things started getting complicated. Every time you picked up another bowling bowl he inched a little bit closer to you, until you could feel his breath on your neck. 

 

“Aaron....am I distracting you from your job? I’m really sorry if I am. You can go back now, and I’ll keep looking over here.”

 

_ Get away from me, you creep! _

 

“Don’t worry my flower, no one ever goes to the counter when I am on shift anyways”, he said, gripping your hand while winking. Your eyes automatically shot to Undyne and Alphys who were already looking back at you, smiling widely. They began mouthing words and pointing, but your poor lip reading skills didn’t help you understand what they were saying. 

 

_ Today sucks. _

 

You looked towards the bar sadly, hoping to catch Sans at least interested in what was happening, but you realized he wasn’t there anymore.

 

“Sorry bud, she’s taken.”

 

The voice came from behind you, then you felt a hard hand on your arm, ripping your hand out of Aaron’s. Before you could say anything you were dragged straight out the door and back behind the building, where no one could see you. For a moment you both stood in silence, Sans tightly holding your arm and looking at his feet.

 

“ _ Am _ I taken?”

 

“...........”

 

“Are you planning on telling me what that was earlier. Or now. Or both?”

 

“...........”

 

You sighed at the silence, and lifted your free hand to his skull, rubbing the top of the bone in a makeshift head pat. Everytime you touched him the sadness within you grew again, causing you to hate the situation a little more. Bracing for the worst, you squinted your eyes close and asked.

 

“Do you not like me anymore?”

 

All the emotions from the day came flooding back as you watched his dark eyes and motionless body, and as you stood there and watched him you gradually became more and more unsure of his feelings and his actions. Gently lifting up your arm, you turned around and started walking back inside.

 

“I like you”, you whispered, knowing with your back turned he couldn’t hear you….

 

When you walked back in you were pulled once again to your seat by Undyne and Alphys, both of them looking quite excited and confident. 

 

“SO!? Didjya make out all romantic and shit!?” Undyne began beating her chest triumphantly, as if she didn’t need to even hear the answer. This made Alphys chuckle and giggle, something you hadn’t heard before. Undyne blushed at the sound, and as they stared into each others eyes you couldn’t help but smile sadly and wish you had been experiencing something romantic with Sans. As loud voices started approaching (Papyrus and his bofriend Mettaton) they broke away from their stare to hear your answer.

 

“Y-Yes, did you two m-make up?”

 

You simply smiled in response. You didn’t want to lie to your new friends, and you had no intentions of breaking up the comfortable atmosphere that was finally growing in the group. This seemed to relax them, and as Sans shuffled back in your group decided to start the game.

 

The rest was a blur. Honestly, you didn’t even know if you lost or won. In this cycle of standing up and sitting down, in smiling and putting on a fake mask, you began gradually shutting down inside. Thankfully no one noticed, and as you all walked out of the bowling alley and back down the snowy road you noticed that the sun was starting to set. 

 

“Thank you for today”, you said a little loud in order to be heard over all the laughing. “It was really nice getting to know you all, but unfortunately I need to catch up on the studies that I missed today, so I have to leave.”

 

“I-It was nice to see you again, too.”

 

Your new friends all gave you a big hug, saying that they enjoyed it very much, and planned on doing this type of outing again sometime soon. (Well, everyone except Sans who stayed in the back of the crowd, looking disinterested.)

 

“Bye”, you exhaled softly, looking directly at Sans. No response.

 

As the group started walking back to the hotel, you calmly walked down the road and all the way to Grillby’s. You had to vent before you exploded. Throwing open the door to Grillby’s and plopping into a bar stool, you looked around and sighed. There were only three other monsters in the diner, and you knew the number would dwindle down to one in about an hour.

 

“....Hello.”

 

“GRILLBY!” You threw yourself across the counter, finally releasing your fake smile and allowing yourself to feel disappointed and upset. “Can I talk to you?”

 

“.....”

 

“I’m taking that as a yes. Ok so I went to the bowling alley today with Undyne, Alphys, Sans, Papyrus, and Mettaton. You know all of them, right?”

 

“.........yes.”

 

“Well while we were there….Sans…..he…...DUMPED ME!”

 

“............I didn’t know you two had relations.”

 

“Well we did and he dumped me and I had to smile and act all happy and shit today and now I’m so emotionally drained and Grillby I just want to die.”

 

“......are you sure he said that. Sans is not the type of monster to say things without reason…………”

 

“ARE YOU TAKING HIS SIDE!?” This brought the attention of the monsters in the diner, and as Grillby looked back at you with his eyebrows slightly raised you realized that you had been practically asking him to side between two of his closest friends.

 

“I’m sorry Grillby….I….I’M JUST HUNGRY”, you said, pointing to the menu. 

 

“.........It’s alright. What do you want?.......”

 

“I’ll have the usual….and to drink….I’ll have the strongest thing you got.”

 

Grillby only stared at you, looking like he had something he wanted to say. He shook it off and turned out towards the kitchen door though, and before long you were presented with a burger, fries, and monster cocktail. You reached to grab it, but he hesitated to put it down.

 

“.........are you sure this is a good idea? You’ve never drank before, and monster drinks are much stronger than human ones…….”

 

“I’m sure, Grillby! I’m not a kid.”

 

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

  
  


“GIBBYYYYYYYYYYYYYY YOU GOTTA SINGGGGGG.”

 

“...I told you that’s not my name.”

 

After downing the monster cocktail without breaking eye contact with Grillby, you had gradually felt your brain getting foggier and foggier, the pain getting less and less. Suddenly all you wanted to do was sing and dance, and the monsters in the diner served as great company. Standing up onto the bar, you pointed heroically to the sky, and began singing while attempting to shove a handful of fries in your mouth.

 

“ANDF IM PROUDF TFO BE AN AFMERIBAN! WERFE AT LEAST I KNOWF IM PFREEEEEEE!!!!!!!” You attempted to jump off the counter to the floor, but landed horribly, causing the monsters in the diner to crack up. 

 

“I’ll have what she’s having”, one of them said, and before long you and the rest of your new gang were singing happily along to various songs.

 

“Jinglle BELL JINGLE BELLS--.”

 

“I’MM SO FANCYYYYYY”

 

“ALL ROUND ME ARE FAMILIAR FACEESSSSS”

 

“OH WHAT FUN IT IS TO RIDE…...Hey guys, wanna play GO FISH!?”

 

You all pumped your fist into the air and screeched “YEAH!!!!”

 

As you sat down at the table and watched one of the monsters shuffle the deck, you looked over and Grillby and started whining.

 

“Gibbyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy why are you no funnnnnnn”, you said while the drunk monsters echoed “no fun no fun” in the background.

 

“......Because I have to work. And because you are one of the worst types of drunkards I have ever seen.”

 

“Bleeeeeeeeh”, you said, sticking out your tongue. You heard him whisper something about maturity, and then you began one of the most entertaining card games of your whole life. Mid-game you and your drunk comrades started debating hastily if the “Jack” in the deck stood for “Jackass” or “Jackie Chan”. You soon decided it stood for Jackass though, since none of the monsters knew who Jackie Chan was.

 

“Can you give us an example thingy”, one of them asked, while the others chanted “do it do it” in the background. How could you say no?

 

“Well”, you declared loudly, standing up onto the table and stepping on all of the cards (not that anyone seemed to notice or care) “Jackie Chan is like...THIS!” Chopping around frantically in the air, you did a bunch of fake kicks for good measure. “Do you dare to challenge the karate master!?”

 

All of the monsters vigorously shook their heads, clearly intimidated by your show of skill.

 

Bored with the lack of competition, you slowly sat down on the center of the table, and sulked. 

 

“IM BORED!”

 

“Wanna do some comedy?”

 

“YEAH, human you have to do it with us! Whenever Sans is here he always---”

 

“HMPH! Don’t talk about that traitor in the karate master’s presence!”

 

Handing you a half-drunk Coke and patting you on the back, the monsters all seemed to perk up at the notion of drama. They all started at you curiously the entire time you drank the Coke, and you were pretty sure one of them hadn't even blinked the entire time. Hell, after the day you’d had, what could you possibly lose?

 

“Alright alright, I’ll tell you. Today I went bowling and---”

 

A large ring from the door caused you to stop mid-story, and as your drunk party glanced over the slow realization dawned that the monster standing in the doorway was none other than the Heartbreaker McBoney-Pants himself.

 

“What’s going on here, kid?” Sans asked the question cautiously, only moving into Grillby’s enough to have the door close behind him.

 

“Well well well, speak of the devil”, you said and gave out a twisted chuckle, grabbing the nearly empty Coke off of the table. “I was just telling my buddies here about today’s traumatic experience. Care to join us?” The monsters laughed a bit as well, clearly amused by this new form of entertainment. After waiting what seemed like an hour (20 seconds in actuality), you stood up on the table and began reenacting the event, all the while acting like you had an imaginary microphone in your hands.

 

“Mr. Sansy, sir, are you and this human girl dating”, you said in a high-pitched voice.

 

Lowering your voice and pausing for dramatic effect, you looked down at your audience before saying “No.”

 

Gasps could be heard as your audience clearly disapproved of the chain of events. You even believed one of those gasps to be Sans.

 

“Come on, _____________”, he said while inching closer, slowly. “You’re drunk and you need to go home before you hurt yourself.”

“Who’s ______________?” You began searching the room for clues, reporting you saw no one of the sort into your microphone.

 

“It’s you. That’s your name.”

 

“No it’s not.”

 

“Yes it is”, Sans sighed, gradually getting closer and closer to you.

 

“No it’s not. My name is Jackie Chan. DUH. Man, for someone so smart, you can be so stupid.”

 

“Yeah, yeah. I am stupid”, Sans agreed with you as he gently grabbed your arm and helped you hop off of the table much safer this time. “And this big stupid bag of bones thinks it’s time to go home now.”

 

No longer having the energy to argue, you just groaned at him as the world started twisting and wobbling. Your friends all whined as they saw you start to walk towards the door, and as Sans put your arm around his neck he nodded back at Grillby apologetically. The cold outdoors hit you hard, and as every step blurred your vision more and more, you felt bile rising in your throat and nausea clouding your mind.

 

“I really am stupid”, you heard him say outloud, and as your heart twisted at his words, so did your stomach.

 

“Sans…”

 

“Yeah?” He stopped moving suddenly, and it was at that moment you realized you were about to do something you regretted.

 

“Sorry.”

 

And then you threw up chunks of fries and Coke all over the snow. 


	11. HIP-pocrite

_ Tick Tick Tick Tick _

 

You awoke to the sound of a rather loud clock in the distance. Opening your eyes slowly you propped yourself on your elbows, trying to ignore your pounding migraine. You heard a small plop, and looked down to see a cool wet rag which had fallen from your forehead. The bright sunlight only aggravated your hangover even more, and as you reached down to cover your face with your blanket, you finally noticed the skeletal body hunched over the side of your bed.

 

“Sans…”, you whispered, shaking him a few times before he finally woke up. He let out a drawn-out groan and rubbed his tired sockets before flashing you an exhausted but happy grin. Sitting up and stretching, you could hear the sound of his bones popping.

 

“Hey, kid.”

 

“What happened last night?” Your memory was foggy on the edges, everything blending together to make it seem unreal.

 

_ I couldn’t have….actually done and said all those things, right? _

 

“...Last night I was a stupid bonehead. And you got mad at me and went to Grillby’s and…”

 

_ HOLY SHIT IT’S TRUE. _

 

Suddenly feelings embarrassed and defensive, your body shot completely upright and you started sputtering out random hostile comments. “Maybe if the bowling and monster girls wouldn’t have happened then I wouldn’t have turned weird and stepped on those cards and Jackie Chan and Gibby and---”

 

“Calm down, you’re going to hurt yourself”, Sans said in a deep and calm voice, gently pushing you down into the bed and grabbing the rag from your lap. “I’m going to fix this rag up again and when I’m gone I don’t want you to move, ok?”

 

Not having any energy to argue but pissed off that he assumed he could tell you what to do, you simply nodded with a scowl. Sans sighed and his smile nearly dropped as he lazily shuffled out of the bedroom and into your small bathroom. As he rinsed the rag he began singing that same tune you’d heard him sing before, except……

 

_ Something’s not right. _

 

You closed your eyes and zoned in on the bittersweet tune, ignoring everything else in the world at that one moment. Behind your closed lids you felt your heart twinge as you remembered what had happened between you and him. Everything. Meeting in the snow near Grillby’s, rushing into a relationship and making promises...meeting up with his close friends and getting rejected by him. You cracked a smile as you remembered what it felt like to have his hand on your hip, to kiss his teeth and flirt and have him hold you...and frowned again when you felt your heart getting ripped out again, his lack of trust to tell you what was upsetting him and his refusal to meet your eyes.

 

A damp and cold sensation on your forehead tore your mind away from your reflecting, and as you opened your eyes you were met with two nearly empty sockets, their happy glow nearly extinguished. His face was hovering above yours as he leaned over to place the rag, and as he looked down at you his brows scrunched up with worry, hoping you wouldn’t lash out due to the sudden contact. 

 

“Sorry I took so long, kid. I’ll never bother you with this again…”, Sans said in a deep and sad tone, clearly meaning the phrase to represent more than just the rag. It was this small phrase that pushed you over the edge.

 

With a strength that surprised even you, you gripped his bony arms and sat up.

 

“Wha--”

 

Shooting forward, you pulled Sans down towards you, causing him to fall face-first into your bed where you had been. As you snapped around you watched Sans shift his body to face you, sweat forming on the side of his head.

 

“Heheh…..did I say something wrong, kid”, he nervously laughed as he was about to sit up. Your arms shot out and grabbed him again, this time pinning him to the bed and leaning in so close your faces nearly touched. You both froze in silence for a few seconds, his nervous smile only intensifying when he realized he couldn’t read your expression. 

 

“Why did you reject me at the bowling alley?”

 

Shifting under your grip you simply leaned in and held him tighter. You both knew that he could push you off if he wanted to...both him and his magic were much stronger than you would ever be. Except he...didn’t. Breathing in and letting out a large exhale, he locked his orbs with your eyes. 

 

“I was reminded of something about myself yesterday...something no human could ever love. I was stupid for thinking that this could work.”

 

“...What is it”, you asked, refusing to budge for even a second.

 

“.....”

 

“Sans, what is it?”

 

“.....”

 

Anger began rising in your chest as your hands held his arms much tighter than before, afraid he would get fed up with this conversation and decide to leave. “HOW DO YOU KNOW WHAT I WOULD FEEL IF YOU HAVEN’T EVEN TOLD ME!? WHO ARE YOU TO DECIDE HOW I WILL RESPON--”

 

“Because...”, he interjected, turning his head to the side as if he was being sucked in by memories from the past. “When I first came above...when I first left the Underground….I killed 3 humans.”

 

Every thought process froze as your arms became slack and you watched the skeleton below you begin to shudder. 

 

“I didn’t know much about humans. Only from a few stories my dad told me about his human partner. Although one was above ground and one was below ground, they both met and discussed scientific breakthroughs inside of a 17th dimensional space called the Inter-Space. It was built as a way to communicate with the outside, but could never let anyone pass through it. My dad liked this human, and they worked well together. When dad died, obviously I lost all contact with that human, too. And then several years later when monsterkind was freed by a human kid we all came above ground...and these humans were nothing like the human my dad had described, or the kid that freed us. They were dirty, vulgar, abusive and prejudiced. They hated everything that wasn’t like them, and that meant us. One day I was coming home from a movie I snuck into, and I heard someone crying. It sort of sounded like Papyrus, so within a second I teleported to the noise. Only...it wasn’t Papyrus at all. It was a human girl being choked and strangled by some men in an alleyway. They were telling her the things they planned on doing……..At that moment, seeing her tears like that………..heh………...all the hate I had for humans welled up and I took it out on them. They didn’t even last a minute. When I realized that I fucked up, I turned to the human girl and asked her to RESET………..”

 

Turning to face you, his dead sockets locked onto yours. 

 

“How could I know that humans can’t use RESET above ground? I thought the human girl was lying at first, so I teleported straight to Mettaton to ask, making him promise to keep it a secret from everyone. He knows the most about humans. And then I told him what had happened and asked him to find a human that could RESET…..heh…..when he told me that none of them could…………..”

 

Silence hung in the air as you crouched unwavering on top of Sans. His answer to your simple question only created a million more. 

 

_ So that’s why Sans acted strange as soon as he saw Mettaton. And the rumor about a child freeing monsterkind is true….but RESET? What is that? Some form of magic? But if a human had it… _

 

“Heheh…..”, Sans let out a choked laugh as he brought his hand up to his skull and rubbed it gently, too hurt to cry. “I’ve never told anyone this…...heheh…...and don’t worry, I can clear up the rumors about us dating really fast. No one will know you made such a shitty mistake. You’re young and smart kid, with your whole life ahead of you. When I saw you defending someone like me against Jeremy I took advantage of your kindness and---”

 

“SHUT UP”, you screeched, pounding both of your hands down onto either side of Sans body, effectively pinning him down again and causing his smile to drop in surprise and worry. “You don’t...know anything about me! You think I’m some nice princess but you’re wrong!”

 

“Sans…..when I first came to this university, I was young. Everyone hated me for my grades and hated me for my personality. They picked on me...some more than others. But when the subject of monsterkind came up, all hell broke loose. I knew what I believed, but I was still scared. ‘If they already hate me this much, what would happen if they found out how I truly felt’ I thought to myself, always making sure to avoid the subject. But unlike me, there was someone who wasn’t ashamed to say what they believed. This boy wore monster pride shirts to class, and directly answered when asked. He was a nice guy. When he started showing up with bruises to class, no one said anything. Not the teachers, not the staff. ‘These people are horrible’ I thought to myself, getting angrier and angrier the more he smiled through it all. He stopped wearing the shirts, and stopped talking about it.”

 

Tears strung down your face in a dirty clump as your throat tightened and you gripped the sheets of the bed.

 

“But even though he stopped talking about it….they kept….going. It kept getting worse. One day I stayed behind to ask the professor some questions, and when I walked into the hallway I heard some laughing. I thought if I walked through the hall I would just get the usual name calling, maybe be tripped a few times. But the closer I got to that group of people at the end of the hall….the more I realized what was happening. There he was, on the ground clutching his stomach. Surrounded by those same people that sneered at me and called me names. When they heard me they stopped and turned. I looked at the boy, then looked at all of them. I knew what they were capable of…..and so I just………….stepped right over him……..and walked out of the door. The next day he transferred from our school, and a week later when I checked him on Facebook to try and apologize………………….”

 

Teardrops fell across the scrunched brows of the skeleton beneath you, the glow in his eyes gradually fading back to normal.

 

“He……..killed himself. His family left his page up in remembrance. Sans, I’m not saying what you did was right. I don’t think it is ever right to take a human life…..but isn’t that what I did? I could have done something, said something. If I had bothered to say one more word, take a single punch, one hit could have saved an entire life. BUT I DIDN’T! I DIDN’T DO A DAMN THING!”

 

Large bony hands gripped your back as Sans pulled himself upward. He wrapped you into a hug so tight you were sure it would leave a mark. But still, it wasn’t tight enough. Desperate, you gripped him equally as hard back, worried that you would fall through his fingers and down into the ground, and shatter apart completely. This hug was unlike any you had received before. It wasn’t sexual. No, it was much, much more than that. It was a pained hug, a broken one. One that could only take place if both souls were completely exposed, faults and all. Neither of you said anything about this exchange of secrets from that moment on. You knew you didn’t have to.

 

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

“Heh, wronggg.”

 

“What the frickety frack are you talking about, Sans? My notes say that the most commonly broken bone in the human body is the hip!” Frantically searching through your notebook, you desperately tried to find the page to prove your worth.

 

“Hey, isn’t that cheating?”

 

“NOT IF IT’S TO PROVE YOU WRONG!!”

 

Ever since the night of secrets, you and Sans gradually started doing everything together. You went to class together, went to Grillby’s together. Much to Alphys and Undyne’s approval, you finally announced that you were dating. It was the talk of the monster side of town, and you couldn’t go ten minutes without someone walking up and asking the question. Two months of this had gone by before you even realized it. You rather liked this routine...even if it meant studying with the most annoying bonehead on earth.

 

“HAH! It’s right here in my notes. ‘The most commonly broken bone is the hip’! So, with all do respect…”, you trailed off, setting down your notebook and standing up.

 

“SUCK IT”, you said, thrusting at him once before sitting down across from him in a victory pose.

 

“Heh...real mature.” Sans winked at you before leaning backward, clearly unphased at your confidence. “Why don’t we check Google before you go jumping the gun on the victory thrust train.”

 

“Yeah, ok. I will believe Google. But don’t be upset when it sides with me on this one!”

 

Smiling, you flipped open your computer and turned it on.

 

_ Huh….I could have sworn I left it on for our study session. _

 

Within a minute the screen loaded, and as you signed in you were bombarded with the desktop background of a very familiar skeleton with hot dogs shoved into his eye sockets.

 

“....You are literally the last person I want to get the maturity talk from.”

 

Sans burst out in laughter, rolling on the ground and wiping non-existent tears from his eye sockets. As you Google searched “most commonly broken bone”, you couldn’t help but crack a smile too...that was, until you read the results.

 

“Awfully quiet over there, bud”, Sans called from the floor as you quickly shut your laptop and pushed it aside.

 

“There weren’t any results shown. Sorry. Better try again some other time.”

 

“Hmmm”, Sans hummed, rolling across the ground to you so he didn’t have to get up. “I don’t meant to brag, but if it’s something as simple as a computer repair…”

 

“DID I SAY RESULTS?! Haha I meant bad wifi. Very bad wifi.”

 

“It’s 7:30 on a Tuesday morning. No one is awake this early except us.”

 

“Well…..well”, you sputtered, pushing the laptop behind you as you searched for another lie. “The battery...died?”

 

“Heh”, Sans chuckled as he raised his hand slightly, sending the glowing laptop hovering above your head and into his lap. 

 

“Let’s see here”, he said, opening the laptop and revealing the results from the great professor Google itself. “ As it turns out, the  clavicle , also known as the  collar bone , located between your shoulder and the front of the neck, is the bone which is most likely to get broken in the human body.”

 

“GOOGLE ISN’T RELIABLE NOTHING ON THE INTERNET IS SAFE IT IS ALL LIES!!!!”

 

“Come on, ________________. Don’t be a… HIP-pocrite”, Sans laughed, sitting up fully satisfied with himself.

 

Groaning, you pushed him in the face. “You’re so dumb.”

 

His smile widened as he grabbed your hand and pressed it even closer to his face, the palm of your hand meeting his teeth and Sans winking at you, closely measuring your expression. You felt your face heat up as you felt his teeth press against your skin in the gesture. All the energy pent up within you from these two months clouded your thoughts with lust as you leaned in close to him, closing your eyes and begging for a kiss. You soon felt cool and hard teeth gently clank against your lips. This was the farthest in your physical relationship you had ever gotten. Even though it was slightly uncomfortable and did nothing to satisfy the buildup throbbing within you, you had come to terms with it. 

 

_ If this is how monster relationships go...then I’ll be happy to--- _

 

Something slick and soft pressing itself into your mouth jolted your eyes open and caused every thought you had to freeze. One hand pressed your hip with the other gripped the back of your head, a warm and foreign sensation wriggling its way around the inside of your mouth and causing your knees to shake. Your breath quickened as the object twirled inside your mouth and tongue, a stifled groan escaping in the small moments you had to catch your breath.

 

“S..ans….”, you whimpered, confused but overcome with desire.

 

At the sound of your voice your boyfriend whipped his head backwards, his glowing orbs wide and coated with a haze of cyan. He was panting as well, and as your eyes trailed down to his parted (and slightly sharp) teeth and long, glowing tongue, the reality of what had just happened dawned on you.

 

“What….was that…”, you asked, still trying to catch your breath.

 

“Uhhhh”, he started to sweat, his tongue retracting and his teeth closing to form his standard grin. His cheeks were covered in bright blue. “Heh...sorry, I uh, didn’t mean to jump into it like that, I just couldn’t restrain myself.”

 

“No, I’m glad you did. I really liked it…”

  
_ If Sans can french kiss…….what else can he do? _


	12. The Kiss

For the next week, all you could do was play the kissing scene over and over again in the back of your mind. Something about Sans that day struck you right down to the center of your being, making it impossible not to want more. The way his teeth curved and his choppy breathing only emphasized his blushing face and determined body and---

 

_ SNAP OUT OF IT. NOW IS NOT THE TIME. _

 

You physically shook your head a few times before returning to your notes and directing your attention to the front of the classroom where another unnamed professor droned on and on about things you could have very well taught yourself simply by reading the textbook alone in your room like you have always preferred to do. Except...you weren’t alone any more. During the daytime or in your nighttime study sessions. Late at night...Sans snoring with that adorable relaxed grin and occasionally chuckling to himself in his sleep and--

 

Another head shake to clear your thoughts, this time much more violent. You glanced sideways at Sans next to you, and for a moment you had locked eye to eye socket. But then suddenly Sans snapped his head downwards and started scribbling on a notepad he had seemingly produced out of thin air. 

 

_ Oh please, we both know you never take notes. _

 

Smirking at him, his skeletal hand gripped the pen a little tighter under your crooked smile. You didn’t need to exchange any words to let him know that you knew something was up. This only made him start to sweat until the professor changed the slide and you were once again back to writing down very vague points which even wikipedia could have been able to explain in more depth. As your mind wandered, you eventually resorted to just going on autopilot and simply copying the slides word for word. One sneaky glance at Sans and you could tell he was zoning out again. A long and heavy sigh only confirmed your suspicions.

 

He’d been doing that a lot lately. Well, ever since what you have decided to deem “The Kiss”. You were going to originally name it “The Kiss That Changed the World” or “The Kiss That Stole My Mouth’s Virginity”, but simply leaving it as “The Kiss” made it sound much more ominous and WABAM IN YOUR FACE. 

 

And to be quite honest, that was exactly what it had turned out to be.

 

Immediately after The Kiss, Sans had shot upwards and said that he needed to go run an errand for Grillby that he had forgotten about.

 

_ Too bad for him. Me and Gibby (you couldn’t help calling him that now that you could look back at your drunken ass and laugh) are close friends too. And not only did he tell me you didn’t visit that night, but he was very clear that if he wanted something done, Sans would be the last person he would ever ask. _

 

It had been exactly 8 days since The Kiss. And in that time not only had Sans constantly insisted that he was far too busy to “cuddle” or even “hang out” but he had even managed to try and convince you that monster magic could hurt a human, and if you so much as touched him your arm would fucking fly off into space or whatever nonsense he was spewing.

 

_ Little does he know that I have been studying this monster magic and its effects on humans and other monsters for years. _

 

_ Well, sure I haven’t been able to find much since all the books humans publish never actually bothered to ask for monster kinds input, since the authors think they are too superior to actually converse on equal footing with the beings. Aaaand they may sometimes conflict with each other...and have never mentioned a skeleton type monster before…but still…. _

 

You worriedly pondered what Sans had told you as you subconsciously began staring at him again. As he felt your unflinching eyes on him he turned a vivid blue before scribbling into the corner of his “notes” a small message that he then showed you by sliding over his entire notebook.

 

what, are you feeling bonely

without the sound of my 

soothing voice?

 

You look down at the cocky and sexual tone of the note in front of you, and then back up to the skeleton who was smiling nervously at you and blushing at his own words on the notepad.

 

_ There's no way in hell this marshmallow could hurt me. Sans you liar there's absolutely no way what you said about your monster magic is true. _

 

You couldn't help but let out a sly laugh as you cupped his notepad with one hand and wrote your response, careful to not let him see it until you were done. Smiling back at him, you slowly pushed back the notepad while trying to have an excuse for your hands to touch, but he simply lifted up his hand so the accidental bump couldn’t happen. You blushed at his flustered face and soaked up every fragment of his reaction to the note. After all, you didn’t know how long you would get to see Sans like this, since he was always so calm and collected, or at the very least, passive.

 

I really like your “enthusiasm”

(for once) when it comes to note

taking, but if you are going to lie

to me, you should probably scribble

something other than the word 

ketchup 12 times on a notepad.

I dunno, just some FOOD for thought.

 

The nervous chuckled that came out of him was higher pitched than normal, that made him sound sort of choked.

 

“W-well…”, Sans choppily stuttered out, starting to stand after your painful lecture class was finally over.

 

_ WHOA. Sans actually can stutter from embarrassment like the rest of us!? _

 

“I’ve got to make like a banana, kid, and--”

 

“Split…”, you dramatically leaned over the desk and wailed fake crying noises. “Split my heart open like you have been for the past 8 days!”

 

“What?” Sans asked the question cautiously, watching you closely as you straightened yourself out and stood right infront of him.

 

It was time for real talk.

 

“Every since...you know...The Kiss, you’ve been acting really weird around me. Like you don’t even want to talk about it and any time I try to push past it and do normal couple things, you always try to...split”. 

 

You looked back at the backpack slung across his shoulder, that he had put on to do just that only minutes before.

 

“Listen, Sans. I’m not saying I am doubting your feelings for me or anything. Our emotional ties are something I can say I love about our relationship. It just...I don’t know what’s going on. I can tell you’re nervous and shy...well...so am I because of….um reasons.”

 

_ NOW IS NOT THE TIME TO TELL HIM ABOUT YOUR UNPUNCHED V-CARD. _

 

_ “... _ heh. Sorry. I just...I just realized something after that day and it’s kind of shaken me up a bit, pal. I...like our relationship. Emotional and physical. It’s just…I don’t want to mess it up. You and me, our bodies work um very...heh…. _ differently _ ….and I think we should take it slow until we fully understand how the others body works. Heheh…”

 

You could tell from his sweating brow and shifty feet that he hated talking about things like this. And it just made you love him even more for it. Without thinking you threw your arms around him in a bear hug, so overcome with emotion at how much he was willing to put into this relationship and how well he planned on taking care of you.

 

Bony arms wrapped around you and hugged back for a split second before they not so gently tore you away from his body.

 

“Stingy, what ever happened to cuddles that lasted more than 5 seconds”, you pouted, taking note that his hands were gripped slightly tighter than was comfortable on either of your shoulders. You reached up your arms to caress his face, but froze halfway when you heard a low grumble and a cracking voice.

 

“Heh...kid...you might want to cut it down on the cuddles for a while.”

 

“Why?”

 

“Because I don’t know if you will like what happens next.”

 

You looked around the empty classroom even though you were certain everyone had left at least 10 minutes ago. 

 

_ Am I feeling lucky or not? _

 

This question echoed in your mind as you examined your madly blushing boyfriend and his clearly aroused and heavy breathing. His orbs locked onto yours, not looking afraid or pleading or any emotion you had seen on his face before. And that was all it took for you to make your decision.

 

“Well then...if you really think I should stop…”, you muttered dejectedly, dropping your hands down to your sides and pouting again. 

 

Sans breathed a sigh and released his death grip, accepting your pouting as a form of submittance. 

 

He turned to leave with his hands in his pockets, but not before you grabbed his shoulder and leaned to whisper in his ear in the breathiest and sexiest voice you could muster.

 

“If you think I should stop...then make me.”

 

_ I’m feeling lucky. _

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fanfic, but if you liked it you should check out my tumblr!
> 
> http://trashcansupreme.tumblr.com


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